Infectious diseases are the world's biggest killer of children and young adults.
The majority of these deaths are caused by just a handful of illnesses - TB, malaria, AIDS, pneumonia, diarrhoeal diseases and measles. TB, malaria and HIV can be prevented or treated with medicines and prevention tools that usually cost a few dollars - often only a few cents. Thanks to health care strategies developed in the past two decades, TB, malaria and HIV can now be affordably controlled even in the poorest communities. The impact of these diseases extends far beyond the suffering of those afflicted. Nor are infectious diseases just a problem of developing countries.