UK health officials have issued a symptoms warning after new figures showed tuberculosis (TB) remains a “serious public health issue”. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said TB notifications in England are not going down, with 5,449 cases recorded in 2025 compared with 5,485 the previous year.
Officials urge awareness of TB symptoms
Dr Esther Robinson, Head of the TB Unit at UKHSA, said it was vital people know the symptoms so they can be treated in time. She stressed that “not every cough” is a cold or COVID-19.
TB is a bacterial infection most commonly spread from person to person through the air by coughing and sneezing. Treatment can be complicated and involves prolonged courses of antibiotics. In recent decades, TB has become increasingly resistant to many antibiotics.
What the data shows
The UKHSA said infections need to be tackled to bring the rate down. Dr Robinson said: “While notifications haven't increased in the past year, TB remains a serious public health issue. It's important that everyone is aware of the symptoms to ensure prompt testing and treatment, so that we can bring TB levels down significantly.
“If you have moved to England from a country where TB is more common, please make sure you know the symptoms of TB so you can get promptly tested and treated through your GP surgery.
“Not every persistent cough, along with a fever, is caused by flu or COVID-19. A cough that usually has mucus and lasts longer than 3 weeks can be caused by a range of other issues, including TB. Please speak to your GP if you think you could be at risk.”
Impact and next steps
TB is the world's leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. It is a bacterial infection that most frequently affects the lungs, which is when it is infectious. Officials are working on a TB National Action Plan focusing on improving the prevention, detection and control of TB in England.
Of the TB notifications, 82.3% were in people born outside the UK. Rates remained highest in urban areas, with the most notifications reported in London (20.2 per 100,000). People living in the most deprived areas were 6.9 times more likely to be diagnosed with TB than the least deprived areas in 2025.
The UKHSA said: “The proportion of people with multi-drug resistant TB notifications was also similar, with 2.1% of people in 2025 found to be affected compared to 2.2% in 2024. This type of TB requires longer and more complex treatment, placing additional burdens on health services.”
