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Hepatitis C: looking at progress in the fight to achieve elimination

The momentum gained in tackling hepatitis C, before COVID-19, should not be lost, says Steve Ryder. Here, he provides an insight into the latest developments in the fight to eliminate hepatitis C, and issues a call to action.

In April 2019, NHS England struck a deal with leading pharmaceutical companies to eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV), an unprecedented move that hailed the start of a national HCV elimination programme.1 It involved those companies, which have developed ground-breaking direct-acting antiviral (DAA) medicines, becoming directly involved in various projects that collectively formed the effort to eliminate a virus that, at the beginning of my career as a hepatologist, did not even have a name.

        Hepatitis C is a bloodborne virus. People can develop serious and long-term consequences affecting the liver, sometimes leading to their death if the virus is not treated. Around 89,000 people2 in England have chronic HCV infection, and about 143,0003 are affected by chronic HCV in the UK.

        Over the past few years, even before the positive steps taken by NHS England, much progress had been made in reducing HCV among the population. In May 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) approved the first ‘Global Health Sector Strategy on Viral Hepatitis, 2016–2021’, where targets were set to eliminate HCV as a public health problem. The UK adopted WHO’s goal of reducing new HCV infections by 90% and cut deaths by 65% by 2030.4 In January 2018, NHS England decided to go further in deciding to eliminate the viral hepatitis by 2025 in England.5

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Upcoming Events

USCAP 113th Annual Meeting

Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
23-28 March, 2024

Pathology Horizons 2024

MacDonald Bath Spa Hotel, Bath
18-20 April, 2024

Diagnostics North East Conference 2024

The Catalyst, Newcastle upon Tyne
19 April, 2024

ECCMID 2024 - European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

Fira Gran Via, 08038 Barcelona, Spain
27-30 April 2024

British Society for Microbial Technology Annual Microbiology Conference

UK Health Security Agency, Colindale, London
2 May 2024

EQA Reports: Interpreting Key Information & Troubleshooting Tips

ONLINE - Zoom
Thursday 16th May 2024

Access the latest issue of Pathology In Practice on your mobile device together with an archive of back issues.

Download the FREE Pathology In Practice app from your device's App store

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