A cough lasting more than two weeks is the signal. Tuberculosis is curable and the treatment is free in Cameroon, but it is caught late because the early weeks feel like an ordinary illness that is simply taking its time.
The pattern
- A cough of two weeks or more, sometimes with phlegm, sometimes with blood.
- Fever, and sweating at night heavily enough to change the bedding.
- Losing weight without trying, and losing appetite.
- Tiredness that builds over weeks, not days.
- Chest pain, or breathlessness, later on.
Go now if
- You are coughing up blood.
- You are very breathless, or have severe chest pain.
- You cannot eat or drink, or you are losing weight rapidly.
- You have both a long cough and HIV. TB is the commonest cause of death in people with HIV, and it moves faster.
Getting tested
Ask for a TB test at any health centre. The modern test looks for the bacterium’s DNA in a sputum sample and gives an answer within hours, including whether the strain resists the main drug. Testing and treatment are free under the national programme. Bring someone to the appointment if you are weak.
Finishing the treatment is the whole thing
Treatment runs six months or more. You will feel well after a few weeks, and that is exactly when people stop. Stopping early is how drug-resistant TB is created, in you first and then in the people around you. Resistant TB takes far longer to treat, costs much more, and is harder to survive. Take every dose to the end. If side effects are the problem, tell the clinic; they can be managed. If you travel, tell the clinic before you go so the supply follows you.
Protecting the household
- Everyone living with the person should be tested, children especially.
- Cover the mouth when coughing; open the windows. TB spreads in still, shared air.
- After about two weeks of proper treatment, most people are no longer infectious.
- Children in contact with a case may be given preventive treatment. Ask.
