Policies & Research

UK Shows the Power of Opt-Out Testing

Thousands of Britons have been found to have been living with previously undiagnosed hepatitis and HIV under a new testing system recently introduced in accident and emergency departments by the …

Understanding Clinical Trials in MASLD

Reviewed byJo Morgan, Nurse Consultant, Hepatology Clinical Research, RAHDr. Damien Harding, Consultant Gastroenterologist & Hepatologist, LMHLibby Cagney, Clinical Trials Manager Hepatology, FMC MASLD (Metabolic Associated Steatotic Liver Disease) – also …

Pig-to-Human Liver Transplant Shows Mixed Success

Part of a liver from a genetically engineered pig has been transplanted into a living human recipient, who then survived a further six months before dying from repeated upper gastrointestinal …

While We Wait for a Hepatitis B Cure – Screen More, Treat More, Treat Earlier

The hepatitis B virus (HBV) is notoriously hard to get rid of. The virus embeds its covalently closed circular DNA (the cccDNA) in the liver, integrating itself into the host …

How Machine Learning Can Help Discover Anti-Hepatitis C Drugs

Finding a single novel molecule for drug development can take years. Machine learning can help process billions of molecules in a day, and aid drug discovery against viral illnesses that …

High Hep C Cure Rate Among NSP Clients

Findings from the Australian Needle and Syringe Program (NSP) Survey 30-year National Data Report shows highly significant reductions in hepatitis C infections and high levels of treatment and cure among …

Birth-Dose Vaccination Crucial to Prevention of Chronic Hepatitis B in Children

Hepatitis Australia and ASHM have released a statement reminding all Australians of the importance of hepatitis B vaccinations to protect the health and wellbeing of children. The statement pointed out …

Cutting Out Hep B with ‘Molecular Scissors’

A genetic peculiarity that is sometimes found in biochemistry is ‘covalently closed circular DNA‘ (cccDNA), where the DNA molecule, instead of being a long, ribbon-like strand, becomes a closed loop. …

Hep C & Mental Illness: New Link Discovered

The blood–brain barrier is a hugely effective “wall” that protects the brain from pathogens in a person’s body. It’s like a highly selective, very fine sieve that allows vital nutrients …

How Hep B Research Helped when COVID-19 Hit

As the coronavirus spread globally in 2020, and people all around the world began to be uncomfortably familiar with RAT tests and PCR tests, NSW historian Michelle Bootcov realised her …

Progress on Closing the Gap is stagnant or going backwards. Here are 3 things to help fix it

The Productivity Commission’s latest data on Closing the Gap progress represents an unsurprisingly grim overview of the socioeconomic inequalities experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Improving Surveillance of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Australia

The incidence of primary liver cancer in Australia has quadrupled since 1982—faster than any other cancer. Yet, the 5-year survival remains just 22%, in stark contrast to countries like Japan, …

World Hepatitis Day 2025 – It’s Time for Action: Testing Saves Lives

In Australia, there are two diseases which, together, kill nearly 1000 people every year. They affect close to 300,000 people and are also the leading causes of rising liver cancer …

98.9%: The Hepatitis C Cure Rate with Current Direct-Acting Antivirals

When we at Hepatitis SA talk with members of the community about hepatitis C treatment, we usually point out that the current available cure works for more than 95% of …