Despite detente, sanctions on North Korea fan TB epidemic
July 15, 2018
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — Doctor O Yong Il swings open a glass door with a bright orange biohazard sign and gestures to the machine he hoped would revolutionize his life's work. It's called the GeneXpert and it's about the size of a household microwave oven. As chief of North Korea's National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, Dr. O saw it as a godsend.
Tuberculosis is North Korea's biggest public health problem. With this American-made machine, his lab would be able to complete a TB test in just two hours, instead of two months.
It took years, but Dr. O got the machines, only to disc...
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