What is tuberculosis?

What are the symptoms of tuberculosis, did they have medicines in 1900s, and is it always fatal?

• I know this is like 3 questions in one but... yeah.... So, got a challenge from a friend in my writing class to rewrite several movies (as novellizations for our eyes only) and 'make them better.' She's a sucker for happy endings, yada yada. But in one a character seems to have tuberculosis (coughing up blood) and ends up dying by other means (being shot) before the story ends. But I was wondering, if this character did not get shot, how long could they have survived, what symptoms would occur, and could it 'resolve itself'? The story takes place in the late 1920's, I believe, and the character with it is 17-18. I dunno if this is too much to ask but Google is yielding nothing and I really dunno what else to search or do. Hum.

• Answer:

  Back in those days there was no effective therapy for tuberculosis (also called consumption back then, because patients kinda wasted away). The best that could be offered was staying at a sanitorium (Not sanitarium) where they would relax, breath fresh air, get good food, etc. But TB was still fatal. To put it in perspective, patients nowadays are treated with 4 drugs for several months in order to treat the infection.