400 Million People Live with Hepatitis But They Do Not Know

[Oscar]

400 Million People Live with Hepatitis But They Do Not Know

[ http://www.ipsnews.net/2016/07/400-mill ... -not-know/ ]

By Baher Kamal July 26, 2016

ROME, Jul 26 2016 (IPS) - With some 400 million people around the world infected with hepatitis B or C, mostly without being aware, the United Nations top health agency encourages countries to boost testing and access to services and medicines for people in need to combat the ‘ignored perils’ of this disease.

A staggering 95 per cent of people infected with hepatitis [ http://www.who.int/hepatitis/en/ ] B or C do not know they are infected, often living without symptoms for many years, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warns. [ http://www.who.int/en/ ] And over 90% of people with hepatitis C can be completely cured within 3–6 months.

“The world has ignored hepatitis at its peril,” said Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO’s director general, ahead of the World Hepatitis Day, which is observed annually on 28 July. [ http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?N ... 5pA4-TrvbJ ]

“It is time to mobilise a global response to hepatitis on the scale similar to that generated to fight other communicable diseases like HIV AIDS and tuberculosis,” she said. [ http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?N ... 5pA_-TrvbJ ]

The number grows by 6 to 10 millions a year, WHO reported, while announcing plans to release new testing guidelines for both hepatitis B and C.

With this, among other actions, the Geneva-based World Health Organisation attempts “to encourage testing and reach the 95 per cent of people who are not aware they are infected with the disease.”

The theme of this year’s World Hepatitis Day is Know Hepatitis; Act Now.
[ http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?N ... 5pA_-TrvbJ ]