Professor Helen Cox
Affiliations
- Full Member, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine
- Honorary Professor, Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Health Sciences;
- Contributing investigator, Wellcome Centre for Infectious Diseases Research in Africa (CIDRI-Africa), University of Cape Town
- Burnet Institute, Australia
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Key Expertise
Drug Resistance, Tuberculosis
Main Research Focus
Helen Cox is an epidemiologist and public health researcher with extensive experience in the epidemiology of tuberculosis (TB) and specifically in drug-resistant TB. Helen was based in Cape Town from 2008 to 2014, and is now at the Burnet Institute, Australia. Research interests range from the molecular epidemiology of drug-resistant TB, through assessing the impact of new diagnostics for TB to appropriate models of care for drug-resistant TB treatment. Further research interests include: the use of new and repurposed drugs in novel treatment regimens for drug-resistant TB, cost analysis of different approaches for drug-resistant TB treatment and the application of a human rights approach to improving the effectiveness of, and access to treatment. A key aim of Helen’s research is direct translation of research findings into policy.
Current research projects: The molecular epidemiology of drug-resistant tuberculosis in Khayelitsha, South Africa. Evaluation of novel diagnostics for TB and TB drug susceptibility testing. The impact of HIV on the risk of acquisition of TB drug resistance during first-line TB treatment. Effective strategies for community wide TB screening for TB elimination.
Most Significant Paper Authored in 2024
Naidoo, K., Perumal, R., Cox, H., Mathema, B., Loveday, M., Ismail, N., Omar, S.V., Georghiou, S.B., Daftary, A., O'Donnell, M., Ndjeka, N. (2024).
This paper provides an overview of the current drug-resistant TB epidemic in South Africa and outlines priorities moving forward.