1M die of pneumococcal disease needlessly

LONDON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Britain's All-Party Parliamentary Group on Pneumococcal Disease Prevention officials say pneumococcal disease must be recognized as a global health issue.

Between 700,000 and 1 million children under the age 5 die each year from pneumococcal disease and these child deaths are a largely preventable tragedy, the group says.

A vaccine against pneumococcal disease exists and is being used in the Britain. The impact of this vaccine has been seen in England and Wales where there has been a 59 percent reduction of cases of invasive pneumococcal disease among children under the age 2 since it was introduced in September 2006.

However, developing countries, which account for more than 90 percent of pneumococcal deaths, don't have access to these vaccines.

"We have a responsibility to help reduce the global health problem of pneumococcal disease, which is under-recognized and until recently, has had few dedicated efforts made to tackle it," Dr. Des Turner, chairman of the group, says in a statement.

"As we've highlighted, governments and international organizations have a crucial role to play in preventing pneumococcal disease in the developing world and need to maintain and grow commitments to mobilize the resources needed to fight the disease."