2023 Factsheet released July 2023.
World Hepatitis Day, held on 28 July, is an international annual day observed by the United Nations and one of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) nine officially mandated global public health days.
World Hepatitis Day is an opportunity to step up national and international efforts on hepatitis, encourage actions and engagement by individuals, partners and the public and highlight the need for a greater global response as outlined in the WHO's Global hepatitis report of 2017.
Internationally, branding and activities are delivered and coordinated by both the World Health Organization and the World Hepatitis Alliance, with over 160 countries delivering activities worldwide.
The World Hepatitis Alliance leads the global fight against viral hepatitis, one of the leading causes of death worldwide. They are a global patient-led and patient-driven not-for-profit organisation with over 290 members in 94 countries. Their mission is to harness the power of people living with viral hepatitis to achieve its elimination.
You can visit the global World Hepatitis Day site here: https://www.worldhepatitisday.org/
In Australia, World Hepatitis Day is coordinated by the national peak body Hepatitis Australia to raise awareness and promote action on viral hepatitis. Hepatitis Australia’s vision is to see an end to viral hepatitis in Australia.
The aim for World Hepatitis Day 2022 in Australia is to mobilise action on the elimination of viral hepatitis in Australia supported by national coordination.
Hepatitis B and hepatitis C are viruses that cause damage to your liver. They can be chronic, which means you could have them your whole life. Without treatment, they can lead to liver disease or liver cancer.
To see the latest statistics about hepatitis B and hepatitis C in Australia and why Australia can’t wait to eliminate hepatitis you can download the World Hepatitis Day 2022 Factsheet using the button below.
2023 Factsheet released July 2023.
In Australia, approximately 220,000 people are living with lifelong Hepatitis B and many are unaware they have the virus.
There is a safe and effective vaccine to protect you against getting hep B.
You can get treatment to manage chronic hepatitis B but not cure it.
In Australia, more than 115,000 people are still living with chronic hepatitis C at the end of 2020 and many are unaware they have the virus or have not been fully diagnosed.
There is no vaccine to protect against hepatitis C, but there is an effective cure. The medicines known as direct-acting antivirals (or DAAs) are easy to take with as little as one tablet a day, no injections and most people experience few to no side effects.
Most people can get a prescription from their GP. They are low cost for people who have a Medicare Card.
