Neglected tropical diseases

Preventing, treating and understanding chronically overlooked conditions.

Updated 14 March 2024

Image credit: Taj Francis

Nearly two billion people are affected by at least one of the conditions known collectively as neglected tropical diseases. Why then is funding to address these conditions so consistently low, and the attention of researchers, health officials and businesses so easily diverted? The clue is in the name: it is not just the diseases that are neglected, but also the people affected by them, who typically live in the poorest parts of the world.

Targets for the eradication of numerous neglected tropical diseases have been set, missed and moved. But hope persists that the world might yet do a better job of reducing the burden of these conditions, or even eradicate them entirely.

This collection will be updated throughout 2024, with reporting from journalists and research from across the Nature Portfolio journals. Follow Nature on X, Facebook and LinkedIn, or sign up for the Nature Briefing, to keep up to date with the latest additions.

Features

Original journalism from Nature.

Fungal diseases are spreading undetected

Low- and middle-income countries are grappling with widespread shortages of diagnostic tests for infections that kill millions. By Charles Schmidt

14 March 2024

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Yaws could soon be eradicated — 70 years behind schedule

Researchers are cautiously optimistic that the neglected tropical disease could be gone by 2030, but new barriers — including antibiotic resistance and primate reservoirs — might stand in the way. By Sam Jones

11 January 2024

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Tropical diseases move north

As Earth warms, the creatures that spread neglected tropical diseases are gaining a foothold in Europe. Wealthy countries must prepare themselves for more cases. By Claire Ainsworth

9 November 2023

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