Haemophilia and Hepatitis C: My Hepatitis Cure

Hepatitis C was one of the unintended consequences of haemophilia treatment before blood products could be tested for the virus. Since the introduction of new highly effective drugs for hepatitis C in 2016, most people with haemophilia in Australia have been cured of the infection.

Gavin Finkelstein is the president of Haemophilia Foundation Australia. He has lived with haemophilia for his whole life, and with hepatitis C since childhood. For World Hepatitis Day, Gavin was kind enough to tell us his story of living both conditions and how he was cured of hepatitis C.

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The 2030 Accord

Action needed now to eliminate viral hepatitis in the next 10 years

We live in a world built upon achievements. We have travelled to the moon, developed vaccines,  created the internet and even cloned life itself. Today we have the opportunity to create our next  greatest achievement: the elimination of viral hepatitis. The journey has already started.

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Hep Can’t What?

In a rare alignment, the Australian 2021 World Hepatitis Day campaign is adopting the message of the global campaign. This year, both global and national campaigns are telling you: hepatitis can’t wait.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen a common outcome in one aspect of healthcare – people with minor or chronic illnesses putting off seeing their healthcare providers. Unfortunately, for some conditions, there can be dire consequences if you wait. Hepatitis is one of those.

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Testing… Testing — New HCV testing technologies

Hepatitis C tests are getting easier. That’s the promise on the horizon as new testing methods are introduced or trialed.

Current conventional hepatitis C testing consists of a blood test for hepatitis C antibodies, followed by a PCR test for the hepatitis C RNA, if antibody test comes back positive. There is the usual waiting period of a week or more after each test. For busy people or transient populations, that poses a challenge. Others are put off by the need to draw blood.

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Hepatitis B Treatment—not necessarily a life-long commitment

There is a common view that once you start hepatitis B treatment, you will be on it for life. This is changing. In recent years, numerous studies have been done looking into the notion of functional cure for hepatitis B which, when achieved, means therapy can be stopped.

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LiverWELL’s Aboriginal Healthy Living Guide: Helping you care for your liver and your mob

Caring for country and for collective wellbeing is something our First Nations have done for over 65,000 years. Building on that strength, and informed by community and artists, Hepatitis Victoria’s LiverWELL program have launched a customised guide that offers Indigenous Australians multiple tips and current links to support healthy living.

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