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By Omboki Monayo
Nairobi, Kenya: In a significant leap forward for tuberculosis (TB) detection, Unitaid and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) have come together to lower the price of a portable, battery-operated digital chest X-ray system.
This innovative device is set to revolutionize TB screening in low- and middle-income countries, making it more accessible for people living in remote communities.
The ultraportable digital chest X-ray, developed by South Korean firm Poskom, weighs a mere 5 kg (approximately 11 lbs) and is equipped with AI-driven computer-aided detection software.
To enable diagnosis of TB, this technology interprets X-rays with an accuracy comparable to expert radiologists, paving the way for early screening and triage outside traditional health facilities. This breakthrough addresses long-standing challenges of distance, cost, and stigma that many face when seeking care.
Dr. Philippe Duneton, Unitaid’s Executive Director, emphasized the importance of this advancement: “This innovation will help bring expert-level TB screening closer to the people and communities most affected by the disease, where health facilities are often out of reach. By making this technology more affordable and accessible, we are not only helping countries reach further with TB care but also reinforcing health systems to respond to lung disease more broadly.”
Under the new pricing agreement, the AirRay 20 ultraportable digital chest X-ray system will now be available for $20,000 or Kes2.6m, representing a steep reduction of approximately 60% compared to similar devices on the market.
This pricing arrangement will extend to 138 countries, including those with high TB burdens such as Kenya, Vietnam, and South Africa. The package includes everything necessary for field implementation, from the lightweight x-ray generator to a backpack for easy transport.
Dr. Neil Buddy Shah, CEO of the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), commented on the importance of increasing access to affordable diagnostics: “With TB still being the world’s largest infectious disease killer, access to low-cost diagnostics has remained a major barrier to care. By dramatically lowering the price of these portable X-ray systems, we’re bringing a breakthrough solution directly to communities where people live.”
Current data shows that tuberculosis remains a serious health issue in Kenya, contributing to an alarming global TB landscape.
According to the latest statistics, Kenya reported over 65,000 new cases of TB in 2022, with approximately 12,000 deaths attributed to the disease.
With persistent barriers to diagnosis, nearly one in five individuals with TB worldwide remain undiagnosed each year, often due to the lack of affordable and effective screening resources.
The technology’s potential is particularly crucial for countries like Kenya, which has seen early success implementing ultraportable digital chest X-ray systems integrated with AI software.
Dr. Immaculate Kathure from the Kenya Ministry of Health noted, “The reduction in price will support further scale-up and accelerate TB case finding within countries’ strained TB budgets.”
This new agreement marks the first market intervention under the Unitaid-funded ASCENT DR-TB Market Access partnership, which focuses on improving access to WHO-recommended TB diagnostics and treatment regimens in resource-limited settings.
Overall, the collaboration aims to ensure that scalable solutions delivering high-quality TB screening reach communities most impacted by the disease, and aims to achieve critical progress in the fight against one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases.
