16 May 2017
325 million living with chronic Hepatitis B & C: WHO report
An estimated 325 million people worldwide are living with chronic hepatitis B or hepatitis C infection, according to new World Health Organisation (WHO) data.
The WHO Global hepatitis report, 2017 indicates most of these people lack access to life-saving testing and treatment. As a result, millions are at risk of a slow progression to chronic liver disease, cancer, and death.
Viral hepatitis caused 1.34 million deaths in 2015, a number comparable to deaths caused by tuberculosis and HIV. But while mortality from tuberculosis and HIV has been declining, deaths from hepatitis are on the increase. Hepatitis B and C are responsible for 96% of all deaths from hepatitis.
Chronic HBV infection results in 686,000 deaths per year from cirrhosis and liver cancer.
CLICK HERE for the full report.