The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that years of progress in tackling HIV, viral hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) are at risk of stalling.

The global health agency raised an alarm that millions of people are being left without access to life-saving prevention, testing and treatment.

Tuesday marks World Hepatitis Day, the birthday of the Nobel-prize winning scientist who discovered the hepatitis B virus.

A new report by WHO found that while countries have made significant advances over the past decade, funding shortfalls, humanitarian crises and persistent inequalities are widening gaps in care for those most at risk.

“This report tells two stories. It demonstrates what is possible when countries invest in health, communities and science.

“But it also shows how quickly progress can be undone with funding disruptions, humanitarian emergencies and persistent inequalities,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

WHO said by the end of 2025, an estimated 32 million people living with HIV were receiving treatment worldwide.

The UN health agency added that since 2010, new HIV infections have fallen by 42 per cent and AIDS-related deaths by 57 per cent.

WHO estimated that around nine million people still lack access to life-saving HIV medicines.

It added that infections continue to rise in several regions, particularly among populations facing stigma and discrimination, including sex workers, people who inject drugs, transgender people and people in prisons.

The picture is similarly mixed for viral hepatitis, with annual hepatitis ‘B’ infections declining by nearly one-third since 2015, and deaths linked to hepatitis ‘C’ have fallen.

In spite of the gains, viral hepatitis remains one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, claiming an estimated 1.3 million lives in 2024.

Meanwhile, progress against sexually transmitted infections has slowed.

WHO warned that reductions in international donor funding disrupted HIV prevention programmes in several countries during 2025.

The reduced funding affect access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a medicine that significantly reduces the risk of acquiring HIV, according to WHO.

The agency also highlighted continuing barriers to diagnosing and treating hepatitis ‘B’, in spite of the availability of highly effective medicines capable of preventing millions of deaths.

WHO said integrating HIV, hepatitis and STI services into primary health care is one of the fastest ways to expand access while building more resilient health systems.

The report also highlights innovations such as long-acting HIV prevention medicines, improved diagnostic tools and stronger digital health systems as key opportunities to accelerate progress.

Among the most promising advances is the WHO-recommended, twice-yearly injectable lenacapavir, which is now being introduced in 10 countries, with rollout planned in a further 14.

Lenacapavir is a highly effective HIV prevention tool administered as an injection just twice a year with the potential to transform the HIV response by preventing new infections, particularly among populations at greatest risk.

WHO also stressed the importance of strengthening community leadership, ensuring that people most affected by HIV, hepatitis and STIs help shape health programmes and monitor whether services are reaching those who need them most.

“Over the next five years, we must build integrated, resilient health systems that reach those furthest behind,” Tedros said.

By Obi Light Ogbonnia

“Can an SS father and an AA mother give birth to a child with sickle cell disease?”

That was the question a curious student asked during one of our recent school awareness campaigns.

It is the kind of question every Nigerian should know the answer to because it lies at the heart of preventing sickle cell disease.

The answer is simple: No.

Science teaches us that an individual with genotype SS carries two sickle haemoglobin genes and can only pass the S gene to each child.

Likewise, an individual with genotype AA carries two normal haemoglobin genes and can only pass the A gene. Every child from such a union will inherit the AS genotype, making them carriers of the sickle cell trait but not sufferers of sickle cell disease.

If this scientific principle is so clear, why do we occasionally hear heartbreaking stories of couples who insist they were told they were SS and AA, yet they gave birth to a child with SS?

In most cases, the explanation is not a failure of genetics but a failure of our healthcare system. Wrong genotype results remain a silent public health crisis. Poor laboratory practices, expired or counterfeit reagents, poorly calibrated equipment, sample mix-ups, inadequate quality control, and, in some instances, corruption and the falsification of laboratory reports have combined to create a dangerous environment where life-changing decisions are made using unreliable medical information.

The consequences are profound. Young people proceed into marriage believing they are genetically compatible, only to discover years later that both are carriers of the sickle cell gene. Families are thrown into emotional distress. Trust is broken. Parents struggle with the lifelong financial and psychological burden of caring for children living with sickle cell disease. What should have been prevented becomes another painful statistic.

To be clear, medicine recognizes a few exceptionally rare situations, such as unusual haemoglobin variants or the need for advanced molecular testing, where routine tests may require confirmation.

However, these rare exceptions do not alter the established law of inheritance: SS × AA produces AS offspring.

Nigeria accounts for one of the largest numbers of babies born with sickle cell disease every year. We cannot win this battle if the very tests designed to prevent the disease cannot be trusted. Every inaccurate genotype result represents a potential family tragedy waiting to unfold.

The Federal Ministry of Health, regulatory agencies, and professional bodies must intensify oversight of diagnostic laboratories, eliminate counterfeit laboratory reagents, enforce external quality assurance programmes, and sanction facilities and individuals found guilty of malpractice. Laboratory diagnosis must become a matter of public trust, not public doubt.

Equally, Nigerians should avoid relying on a single genotype test, especially when the result will influence marriage or childbearing decisions. Confirmatory testing in accredited laboratories should become the standard practice.

The fight against sickle cell disease does not begin in the hospital ward; it begins in the laboratory. When corruption enters the laboratory, science is compromised, prevention fails, and innocent children bear the consequences. Protecting the integrity of genotype testing is not merely a professional obligation, it is a moral responsibility and a national priority.

If we truly desire a Nigeria with fewer children born with sickle cell disease, then we must first ensure that every genotype result tells the truth.

About the Author

Obi Light Ogbonnia is the Founder and President of the Obi Ogbonnia Sickle Cell Foundation (OOSCF), a sickle cell survivor, public health advocate, and international speaker. He has dedicated his life to promoting genotype awareness, patient support, policy advocacy, and equitable access to quality healthcare. Through education and community engagement, he continues to champion efforts aimed at reducing the burden of sickle cell disease in Nigeria and across Africa. His guiding message remains: “It’s Sickle Cell, Not Sickle Life.”

From Attah Ede, Makurdi

Fresh Lassa Fever outbreak has claimed the life of a senior medical doctor working with APIN Foundation in Konshisha local government area of Benue State.

The State Commissioner for Health and Human Service, Dr.

Paul Ejeh-Ogwuche, who confirmed the new case to journalists in Makurdi on Monday, disclosed that the ministry has embarked on case and contact tracings.

Ogwuche stated that the victim succumbed to the disease after struggling within himself for over two weeks, saying the State is on the verge of declaring the outbreak over before the new case was recorded a few days ago.

According to him, emergency response measures have been activated to contain the spread of the viral disease and protect residents.

He maintained that with this fresh outbreak, the ministry has heightened its campaign again and reactivated its awareness campaign by going back to the communities even though they have been doing this all these while.

“There is a fresh case of Lassa Fever in the State. Only one doctor had died. The victim was buried on last Saturday being 20th June, 2026. He worked with APIN Foundation in the Konshisha local government area of the State, but hailed from the Kwande local government axis.

“So far, there is no other person on admission at any hospital in the State. In fact, we wanted to declare the outbreak over before this case came up. The doctor took ill and was managing himself at home and in a private hospital.

“For over two weeks he was struggling and when there was no improvement, then another of his friends told him that his situation is suggestive of Lassa Fever and they carried out something like a casual test on him which turned positive.

“So, when we even wanted to put him on admission at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital, he said no, that we should give him drugs to take at home and injection. But we said no, it wouldn’t work like that. He was eventually taken to the teaching hospital for a test”, he said.

According to the commissioner, a baseline investigation was conducted on the victim where it was discovered that his kidney is getting affected.

“We have to refer him to Jos. So, he actually died in Jos and the corpse was brought from JUTH and buried on Saturday”.

Speaking on other measures being taken to forestall further outbreak, Dr. Ogwuche intimated that the responses to all those emergencies are similar, adding that with the recent outbreak of  Ebola,  NCDC has been giving them updates and also putting them on alert.

“So also we have been doing that. We checked all our facilities, heightened our surveillance and for this particular case, we have embarked on case and contact tracings too, spreading the message. We have ongoing engagement with the media for jiggles. We are thinking of bringing people to churches and mosques to train and even traditional rulers too because they are in the communities.

“Like I told you earlier, we are about to declare the outbreak over after the 42 incubation period before this case broke out. This is the only case for now. And so, we are still going to wait for another 42 days of incubation before we can think of declaring it over again. But off course, we are looking at it becoming endemic now even though it has season. We need to keep on educating people”, Ogwuche added.

Meanwhile, another medical doctor identified as Dr. Tyoor Cedric Kondom who graduated recently and is waiting for his induction into the profession in the next ten days, has died of bone marrow failure in the State.

The Benue Medical and Dental Students’ Association (BEMSA-National) announced his death in a tribute, describing him as a dedicated and hardworking graduate whose life was cut short at a crucial moment in his career.

“With deep sadness and a profound sense of loss, we join family, friends, and colleagues in mourning the passing of our beloved brother and colleague, Dr. Kondom Cedric, who passed away on Thursday, 18th June 2026,” the association stated.

According to the tribute, Cedric had successfully completed the rigorous demands of medical school and was only days away from being formally inducted as a medical doctor when he died.

The association described him as an exceptional young professional whose time in medical school was marked by determination, resilience, and commitment to the practice of medicine