WASHINGTON, DC—When Natalie Skipper got sick after spending time
in South Africa, no one could figure out what was wrong. Over
the next year, she was diagnosed with—and treated for—several
illnesses, including Chron’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and
pneumonia. At one point her doctor even told her they would need
to remove her colon in order for her to recover. But all of
these diagnoses were wrong. Panels with titles like “HIV/TB
collaborative activities,” and “cost-effective approaches to HIV
and TB treatment” have speckled the schedule this week at AIDS
2012. That’s because worldwide, one in four AIDS deaths is
caused by tuberculosis (TB). Spread through droplets released
when an infected person coughs or sneezes, TB can be deadly. In
fact, it’s the leading killer of people living with AIDS. But TB
isn’t always tied to HIV/AIDS. Only 12 percent of TB patients
have HIV, which means that 88 percent do not, and Skipper, 34,
is one of them. In South Africa she spent five months working as
a physical therapist