NIHR Global Health Research Unit on Respiratory Health (RESPIRE)

Quit4TB trial launched in Bangladesh

A clinical trial to help smoking cessation in TB patients is now underway in Bangladesh

Group photo of attendees at the Quit4TB launch workshop
The workshop was attended by stakeholders in government, academia and beyond.

Tuberculosis (TB) and tobacco smoking are co-epidemics that disproportionately affect many low and middle-income countries (LMICs). People who smoke are more likely to become infected with TB, be more infectious and develop worse health outcomes compared to their non-smoker counterparts.

RESPIRE researchers, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, had previously developed a mobile Health programme known as mTB-Tobacco . The programme is designed to support people recovering from TB who also wish to stop smoking by sending carefully crafted and timed SMS messages to their mobile devices as they undergo treatment for TB.

The RESPIRE-funded Quit4TB trial aims to assess the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of mTB-Tobacco in Bangladesh and Pakistan – two countries with a high disease burden of TB and tobacco. In September, ARK Foundation launched the Quit4TB Trial in Bangladesh, through a workshop attended by key stakeholders in government, academia and beyond.

Integrating tobacco cessation within TB programme is an important policy agenda of Bangladesh. Quit4TB Trial will contribute in developing evidence-informed smoking cessation programme to help TB patients quit smoking in Bangladesh. 

Professor Rumana HuqueExecutive Director of ARK Foundation

Quit4TB is funded by RESPIRE, and led by partners from the University of York, ARK Foundation, Bangladesh and The Initiative, Pakistan.

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