Syphilis is said to have affected some of the great writers and artists of history including Oscar Wilde, Van Gogh and Manet. Yet, despite being depicted in some of the most popular artwork and literature of our time, it affects more pregnant women than HIV and it kills over 400,000 babies a year.

Today, I'm speaking at the Pacific Health Summit on the importance of harmonising the regulation of diagnostic tests. Having worked in diagnostics for over 20 years, it's frustrating to see people dying for the lack of a simple diagnostic test when tests such as those for HIV have revolutionised our approach to healthcare.

The greatest tragedy is surely for a mother to bury her child. But imagine the grief of passing on a deadly disease to your child - and being powerless to stop it? An estimated one million babies die every year from congenital syphilis - deaths that could be prevented by just a single shot of penicillin.