In Depth: Behind China’s Struggle to Bring Down Drug-Resistant TB

Wang Li used to work as a highway surveyor in Southwest China’s Sichuan province. But after being diagnosed with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in May 2023, the 25-year-old had to quit his job and stay at home. Wang told Caixin that his treatment regimen involves taking as many as 47 pills a day for up to 20 months.

Similarly, Lin Fang, a graduate student at a university in South China’s Guangdong province, had to take a break from her studies after her TB rebounded a year after she stopped taking medication. Now, in her rural home in the central province of Henan, Lin spends her days alone in her room, wearing a mask and eating separately from her family. “I really want to … get cured quickly and return to normal life as soon as possible,” said Lin, who is in the middle of an 18-month treatment regimen.