Key points
Thu, a tuberculosis (TB) survivor, shares her story about being diagnosed and treated for active TB disease. She wants to raise awareness about the importance of TB testing and treatment.
Thu's story
Thu was tested for TB when she came to the United States as an international student from Vietnam. She was diagnosed with inactive TB, also called latent TB infection, and offered treatment.
TB germs can live in your body for years without symptoms. This is called inactive TB. People with inactive TB are infected with TB germs, but they do not have active TB disease. They do not feel sick, do not have symptoms of TB disease, and cannot spread TB to others.
Without treatment, people with inactive TB can develop active TB disease at any time and become sick. People with active TB disease may also be able to spread the germs to people they spend time with every day.
At the time of her diagnosis with inactive TB, Thu's English skills were limited, and she didn't understand the information from her health care provider.
"All I know was that I have an option to not take the treatments. As a young person I didn't experience any symptoms, so I decided to not take any treatment," Thu recalls.
Diagnosis
Thu was tested for TB a second time before getting married, as part of the immigration process. This time she was diagnosed with active TB disease. Looking back, she remembers feeling really tired during the day, and losing some weight.
"When I was diagnosed I was planning to get married in Vietnam in December. I was diagnosed in October, so my wedding was postponed until I finished the treatment," says Thu.
Treatment and support
Thu appreciated the support of the local health department during her treatment.
"I had a really good experience with the tuberculosis control center. When I was first diagnosed with active TB I was still going to school and going to work at the same time. I didn't have a car and a tuberculosis control center always keep up with my schedule and show up at where I work or at school and my convenient time to give me the treatment that– the necessary treatment and I really appreciate that," says Thu.
Thu's experiences with the local public health department inspired her to enroll in a public health degree program. She hopes her coursework and training in both pharmacy and public health prepares her for a career in helping others.
Thu's message
Looking back, she wishes she would have better understood the importance of treating her inactive TB to prevent the development of active TB disease.
"I share my story because I want people to realize that the treatment of latent TB [inactive TB] is very important. I wish that when I found out that I had latent TB, there was a local health worker who could speak Vietnamese or if I could link to a translation. In some case, to help me translate into Vietnamese, I might have changed my mind to treat the latent TB," says Thu.
Thu completed her treatment for active TB disease and was able to have her wedding in Vietnam.
"TB is completely curable, and treatment can be difficult, but after you finish the treatment you can live a normal life," says Thu.
If you are a TB patient, survivor, or family member in need of support, We Are TB is a community of TB survivors, people being treated for TB, and their family members who are committed to the common goal of eliminating TB.