Hepatitis SA is enthusiastically backing Hepatitis Australia’s call for universal hepatitis B (HBV) testing, after new data confirmed the silent role of chronic hepatitis B in Australia’s rising liver cancer deaths, a call also backed by Cancer Council Victoria.
New data shows that liver cancer deaths caused by chronic hepatitis B are increasing in Australia. The data from the WHO Collaborating Centre at the Doherty Institute revealed that in 2023, 460 Australians died due to complications from chronic hepatitis B, which is a 10.6% increase in deaths nationally since 2017, following years of gradual decline. Of these deaths, a massive 82% were attributable to hepatocellular carcinoma (the most common form of liver cancer) caused by a chronic hepatitis B infection.
As the Australian election campaign rolls on, Hepatitis Australia is asking for the nationwide rollout of a universal offer of hepatitis B testing for people aged over 25, to combat this increasing cancer wave. This means offering free and easy HBV tests to people as a routine part of their health care, just as GPs now regularly suggest blood tests to monitor other health issues such as cholesterol, indications of diabetes, and organ dysfunction.
More than 220,000 people in Australia live with hepatitis B, and at least a quarter of them (55,000+ people) do not know they have it. Without medical intervention, one in four people living with chronic hepatitis B will die from liver cirrhosis or liver cancer. Much broader hep B testing could help avoid tens of thousands of preventable deaths.
The Royal Melbourne Hospital’s Professor Benjamin Cowie, Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis at the Doherty Institute, said these deaths could be prevented through increased testing and linking those affected to care.
“In recent years, we have seen an increase in deaths related to chronic hepatitis B. This is partly due to an ageing population, but also to not enough people receiving the adequate care and treatment they need to manage the virus,” Professor Cowie said.
More than 220,000 people in Australia live with hepatitis B, and at least a quarter of them (55,000+ people) do not know they have it.
“We will not eliminate hepatitis B or reduce liver cancer deaths without universal testing for people over 25,” Hepatitis Australia CEO Lucy Clynes said. “Hepatitis B is often symptomless until it’s too late. Diagnosis unlocks access to simple, effective treatment that protects the liver and prevents cancer. But people can’t get care if they don’t know they’re living with this virus.”
The call for expanded testing is grounded in the federal government’s own draft Fourth National Hepatitis B Strategy, which outlines how Australia can meet its ambitious goal to eliminate hepatitis B as a public health threat by 2030. The final Strategy is due to be released soon. To achieve this goal, 90% of people living with hepatitis B must be diagnosed, and 80% engaged in care.
At the moment, only 73 per cent are diagnosed, and an alarming less than 25 per cent are in regular care. Hepatitis Australia is urging the Commonwealth to fund and implement a universal testing offer in primary care for people aged 25 and over, the group most at risk of undiagnosed, chronic infection. And meanwhile, liver cancer rates in Australia climb each year.
“Most people with hepatitis B got it at birth or in early childhood and have no idea they carry the virus. These people aren’t being reached through current risk-based approaches,” Ms Clynes said. “We commend the federal government for its national, strategic approach and for the ongoing investment in viral hepatitis. A universal offer of testing is the critical next step in hepatitis B elimination.”
The Strategy acknowledges that testing based on risk factors alone has failed to lift diagnosis rates meaningfully in the past decade, which means that if current trends continue, Australia will fall woefully short of its 2030 targets. The Strategy explicitly supports offering population-wide testing as a path forward, so it is hoped that whoever forms government in May 2025 will have the courage and determination to follow through.
Last updated 15 May 2025
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