Abstract
Non-communicable diseases are no longer largely limited to high-income countries and the elderly. The burden of non-communicable diseases is rising across all country income categories, in part because these diseases have been relatively overlooked on the global health agenda. Historically, communicable diseases have been prioritized in many countries as they were perceived to constitute the greatest disease burden, especially among vulnerable and poor populations, and strategies for prevention and treatment, which had been successful in high-income settings, were considered feasible and often affordable in low-income settings. This prioritization has reduced the communicable diseases burden globally but has left non-communicable diseases largely neglected. A new approach is urgently needed to tackle non-communicable diseases. Based on an analysis of potential features which may have underlain the different approaches to non-communicable diseases and communicable diseases until now, including acuity of disease, potential for control or cure, cost, infectiousness, blaming of individuals and logistical barriers, little ethical or rational justification can be found to support continued neglect of non-communicable diseases. Justice demands access to quality and affordable care for all. An equitable approach to non-communicable diseases is therefore strongly mandated on medical, ethical, economic, and public health grounds. Funding must not however be diverted away from communicable diseases, which continue to require attention—but concomitantly, funding for non-communicable diseases must be increased. International and multi-sectoral action is required to accelerate progress towards true universal health coverage and towards achievement of all of the sustainable development goals, such that prevention and access to care for non-communicable disease can become a global reality.
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Notes
WHO Best Buys are a set of highly cost-effective policy options for NCDs as outlines in the Global Action Plan for the prevention and control of NCDs
Since 2000, global malaria deaths have fallen by 48%; HIV infections and HIV deaths have fallen by 36% and 38%, respectively; 53 million lives have been saved in people treated for tuberculosis(www.who.int)
SDI is a composite average of the rankings of the incomes per capita, average educational attainment, and fertility rates of all areas in the Global Burden of Disease study
The first UN High Level Meeting on NCDs was held in 2011, followed by on in 2014 and one in 2018
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We are deeply grateful to the following individuals for thoughtful review of the manuscript and insightful comments: Sir George Alleyne, Dr Carla Saenz, Dr Andreas Reis, Dr Andreas Ullrich.
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VL and FL conceived the manuscript together, and VL wrote the first draft. FL and VL integrated all feedback and rewrote various iterations of the manuscript.
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Luna, F., Luyckx, V.A. Why have Non-communicable Diseases been Left Behind?. ABR 12, 5–25 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41649-020-00112-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41649-020-00112-8