ELF Community Advisory Group attends UNITE4TB annual meeting

Members of the ELF Community Advisory Group (CAG) – Blessi Kumar, Paul Sommerfeld and Stephan Dressler – attended the UNITE4TB annual meeting in London from 6 to 8 May 2025. They spoke about the group’s work to date, their plans for the year ahead and some of the challenges they have encountered.

The CAG is a core part of the UNITE4TB project. It was established to allow for meaningful engagement with people affected by tuberculosis (TB) and ensure patients’ voices are considered throughout its activities. The group includes members from across the world who have either lived experience of TB or work with communities affected by it.

During the meeting, the CAG members explained why it is important to engage the patient community. This can bring many benefits to research, including:

• The opportunity to highlight important issues not considered by the experts
• Helping improve the design of clinical trials
• Supporting wider recruitment for studies

They also highlighted wider challenges including global funding cuts, the need for greater diversity in clinical trials and the importance of reaching out to communities at trial sites.

Looking ahead

Blessi also took part in a panel discussion on underserved groups in TB research. She emphasised the need to include children and pregnant women in clinical trials, noting that an estimated 1.3 million children and young people were diagnosed with TB in 2023. 

More action should be taken to include these groups in research that could improve their treatment options. This would increase access to support for the disease and reduce health inequalities worldwide.