02.10.2025
Tuberculosis and Migration: Protecting the Most Vulnerable
Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the world’s most dangerous infectious diseases – and it affects people on the move particularly hard. In Germany, nearly three out of four TB cases are found in people who were not born in the country. How migration, poverty, and war are shaping the spread of TB in Europe was the focus of a symposium organized by the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center (FZB), at the 14th Congress for Tropical Medicine and International Health in Hamburg. The Symposium was chaired by Dr. Thomas Brehm and Prof. Christoph Lange (both FZB and UKE, Hamburg).
The event began with the film “Tuberculosis: Illness in the Luggage”, which tells the story of how TB travels with people who are forced to leave their homes. The film is a joint project of the FZB with Filmmakers Anke Petersen and Christian Hornung from Hamburg. The filmmakers and the main character joined the audience to share their experiences, setting the stage for a deeper discussion about the human toll of the disease.
What experts revealed:
Dr. Niklas Köhler, showed FZB research together with the Tuberculosis Network European Trialsgroup (TBnet) how a disease is tied to history: Many TB patients in Europe come from regions with historic ties to their new countries. For example, people from India are often affected in the UK, while France sees cases from Algeria and West Africa, and Spain from South America. This shows how migration patterns are shaped by history. He also demonstrated that one-size-fits-all health solutions for TB prevention don’t work and proposed public health interventions based on the risk of TB in different populations in the different European countries.
Dr. Krista Stoycheva demonstrated FZB research together with the European Centers of Disease Contol an Prevention (ECDC) that war in Ukraine made TB worse: Up to 10 million of Ukrainians were displaced after the Russian invasion. Within two years, Ukraine shifted from a medium- to high-incidence country. One in three patients there suffers from drug-resistant TB – and half of all drug-resistant cases in Europe today come from Ukraine.
Dr. Anca Vasiliu presented research at FZB on adults and children at risk, performed again on the Borstel-based research platform TBnet: Migrant children are especially vulnerable. Almost one percent of those arriving in Europe are already living with active TB. Experts warn that without early protection and care, their chances of recovery are lower than for children born in Europe.
Why this matters:
Tuberculosis is not only a medical challenge – it is a human one. It affects people fleeing poverty, war, or persecution, often when they are at their most vulnerable. Experts emphasized that protecting migrants from TB is not only a question of public health but also of fairness and solidarity. Tailored strategies that take into account people’s backgrounds and risks are urgently needed.
Kontakt
Prof. Dr. med. Dr. h.c. Christoph Lange
DZIF TTU TB (ClinTB)
T +49 4537 / 188-3010 (Sekretariat)
F +49 4537 / 188-6030
clange@fz-borstel.de