Baguio: The Department of Health - Cordillera region urged residents anew to undergo testing for tuberculosis (TB) and avail of the government's free medication to prevent the spread of the disease. 'Wag sanang isipin ng iba na dahil positive sa TB ang kasama nila sa bahay or sa trabaho kaya sila dapat magpatest dahil hindi natin alam baka sa kanila nanggaling ang sakit at nauna lang na nagpa-test yung isa (Just because a family member or an office mate tested positive for TB does not mean that he/she is the source of the illness. Those around them could be the origin of the disease. It just so happened that the family member or office mate underwent the test first. That is why everyone needs to be tested),' Geeny Austria, focal person of the DOH-Cordillera's TB prevention program, said during a health briefing on Wednesday.
According to Philippines News Agency, Austria said that TB can be detected through a chest X-ray and a sputum test. 'Mas maganda na alam natin para makapagpagamot tayo kasi libre naman ang pagpapagamot pati ang mga test (It is better that we know so that we can get the free treatment and free medicine),' she added. Austria said that with the TB testing program brought to communities through a mobile X-ray clinic, they have detected about 21,000 suspected TB cases out of a total of 218,000 individuals tested in 2025. Of this number, at least 4,800 tested positive and have undergone treatment.
Austria noted that most of the patients who tested positive were above 55 years old and have a weak immune system. 'The target of the DOH is to test everyone and see their condition. That is why we are bringing the mobile X-ray clinic to the communities, especially in areas where there (is) no easy access to the service,' she said. 'TB is treatable, and the treatment is free, so there is no reason to worry about expenses.'
For 2026, Austria said, the DOH-Cordillera aims to subject 180,000 individuals to TB testing. Records show a 92.3 percent recovery rate for those who have undergone the treatment without reneging on the medication. 'Those who were not treated died due to late diagnosis as a result of co-morbidities, while the others had to go back to start after failing to comply with the treatment schedule,' she said.
The Cordillera region has 108 TB treatment clinics. Among the symptoms of TB are prolonged cough, fever of unknown origin, weight loss, and night sweats. The DOH earlier intensified TB testing of ordinary persons to detect unaware carriers and subject them to treatment, preventing the disease's further transmission. 'The country's target is zero cases by 2030, and we can only achieve this with the cooperation of everybody, undergoing testing to determine their health status,' she said.