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Project Summary
Most cases of liver cancer are preventable, and if people who are living with hepatitis B or hepatitis C have access to good health care to manage their condition, their risk of getting liver cancer later in life is reduced significantly. For this to happen, people who are affected by hepatitis need to be offered testing, and receive follow-up and appropriate treatment by their doctor. This project aims to discover the best tools to support doctors to do this, and will help people living with hepatitis increase their understanding of how to reduce their risk of liver cancer.
Aims
- Identify priority areas for action in supporting the primary care response to viral hepatitis and the prevention of liver cancer
- Increase screening for viral hepatitis and improve clinical management through an intervention to support primary health care clinicians and affected individuals to reduce the risk of viral hepatitis associated liver cancer
- Improve awareness and outcomes for people living with viral hepatitis and at risk of liver cancer
Objectives
- Define the gaps in screening, diagnosis and management of viral hepatitis for Victorians at risk of liver cancer using a large population based primary care data set
- Assess the impact of disparities in the level of engagement in care on the incidence of adverse outcomes, including late diagnosis with liver cancer
- Collaboratively design an evidence-based, community-informed intervention to increase viral hepatitis testing, enrolment in care and appropriate management to prevent, and increase early detection of liver cancer to improve outcomes
- Develop an evidence-based liver cancer risk assessment and communication tool for use by health care providers and Victorians at risk of hepatitis-related liver cancer
- Further develop the Hepatitis Victoria LiverWell app to increase consumer understanding of self-management and liver cancer risk
- Evaluate the impact and acceptability of the intervention in improving screening, diagnosis and clinical management of people at risk of or living with viral hepatitis in primary care
Investigators
WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
Principal Investigator: Prof Benjamin Cowie
Chief Investigators: Prof Gregory Dore, Ms Jennifer MacLachlan, Ms Melanie Eagle, Ms Emily Adamson
Collaborating Organisations: Melbourne Health, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The Kirby Institute (University of New South Wales), the Burnet Institute, LiverWELL (Hepatitis Victoria), Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network, Gippsland Primary Health Network, South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network, Outcome Health
Support
Victorian Cancer Agency Collaborative Research Grants: Improving Cancer Outcomes for Upper Gastrointestinal Cancers