- Doctors advise public as TB cases remain high
HEALTH officials emphasized early detection after noting a high number of lung-related illnesses, including tuberculosis, in Davao City as the third quarter of 2026 comes to a close.
Dr. Jeannie Marie D. Salmasan, the city’s tuberculosis medical coordinator, said active case-finding activities revealed 3,960 TB cases recorded as of the third quarter of the year.
Salmasan said of these numbers, 53 were classified as drug-resistant TB cases, which she described as significantly harder to treat.
For the entire year of 2025, health officials recorded 8,652 TB cases.
As of the second quarter of 2026, 71 deaths were logged, although it was not yet specified whether TB was the direct cause.
Salmasan cited a death review covering July 21 to 24, 2026, which found that some patients who died had other underlying conditions, including diabetes, stroke, and gastrointestinal illnesses.
However, she noted that these cases are still counted as part of overall TB mortality statistics since the patients were TB-positive at the time of death.
TB symptoms are often present for a long time before patients seek medical attention.
“Most of the time dugay usually moadto sila sa amoa, dugay na ilang sintomas because dili sila magpa-examine,” she said.
Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, she said lung-related illnesses continue to rank among the leading causes of death in the country, with pneumonia, other respiratory diseases, and tuberculosis (TB) placing 4th, 7th, and 8th, respectively.
The prevalence of these diseases can be attributed to their airborne nature, which allows them to spread easily, particularly through close contact in households and workplaces.
Dr. Vincent Magallanes, pulmonologist and facility head of the Davao Doctors Hospital TB-DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course) program, said stigma remains one of the biggest barriers to TB control, as many patients fear being tested or judged once diagnosed.
Magallanes said people who appear thin or have lost weight are often immediately assumed to have TB, a form of stigma that discourages individuals from getting checked.
“TB patients need strong support systems and early intervention, as the disease is treatable,” Magallanes stressed.
He added that patients are typically no longer considered contagious after just one to two weeks into their six-month treatment course, which begins with a two-month intensive phase.
He also said that persons in close contact with a patient can take preventive therapy, or TB prophylaxis, to keep infections from progressing.
Magallanes warned that delayed treatment can lead to permanent lung scarring even after a patient is cured of TB. These complications, combined with conditions like cancer, HIV, and uncontrolled diabetes, significantly raise the risk of death.
Magallanes emphasized the importance of contact tracing, particularly among household members and co-workers of confirmed TB patients, to contain the spread of the disease.
Close contacts are checked for symptoms and referred for chest X-rays, as TB can be caught and treated even before it becomes full-blown.
He clarified that TB is transmitted through the air and not through saliva, meaning sharing utensils, plates, or glasses with an infected person does not pose a transmission risk. Proper ventilation and the use of face masks remain key preventive measures against the spread of the airborne disease.
