While treating MDR-TB remains possible, doing so is arduous, with a treatment time of roughly two years, using drugs that are neither as efficient nor as benign as canonical drugs – and at a cost that rises by a factor of 10-100. While this additional cost can be borne by health-care systems in the rich world, it is excessive for poor countries, implying no, or insufficient, treatment.
治疗MDR肺结核仍是可能的，但费时费力，大约需持续两年，使用的药物也比常规药物药力更低、副作用更猛，所花费用也要高出十倍。尽管这一成本在发达国家可以纳入医保，但穷国就无力承担了，这意味着这类肺结核得不到（有效）治疗。