About Hepatitis
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 Factsheet using the button below.
Hepatitis B
In Australia, more than 200,000 people are living with chronic Hepatitis B and many are unaware they have the virus.
There is a safe and effective vaccine to protect you against getting hepatitis B.
You can get treatment to manage chronic hepatitis B but not cure it. You can live well with hepatitis B.
Hepatitis C
In Australia, more than 74,000 people are still living with chronic hepatitis C 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.