Tuberculosis is an important public health problem in Gabon, and the DOTS strategy recommended by the World Health Organisation has not been successfully applied. In 2006, 45% of patients abandoned treatment during the first phase. A pilot cross-sectional study was thus conducted from September 1 to November 30, 2006, at the Nkembo Tuberculosis Centre in Libreville, Gabon. Thirty patients with positive microscopy results who returned after having interrupted treatment completed a standardised questionnaire. They were mainly young men: their mean age was 33 years old and the male/female ratio was 2.7. Reasons for having abandoned treatment were a lack of money to pay for it (43%) and an impression that they had been cured (23%). The motivations for resuming treatment were the return of symptoms (73%). The risk of drug resistance requires that the Gabonese government play a greater role in the fight against tuberculosis.