Hepatitis C Spreading at Alarming Rate, Expert Warns

News Desk

Islamabad: Health experts on Thursday expressed grave concerns regarding the concerning rise in ‘Hepatitis C’ cases nationwide, emphasizing the critical importance of public awareness to control the spread of this viral disease.

Gastroenterologist Dr Asad Chaudhry highlighted the pressing need for heightened awareness to curb practices involving contaminated blood and the reuse of syringes, identified as significant contributors to the disease’s transmission.

Dr Chaudhry underscored that a large segment of the rural population in the country refrains from undergoing medical check-ups due to a lack of awareness regarding proper blood screening procedures and the risks associated with syringe reuse.

Highlighting the severity of hepatitis B and C infections, he emphasized their silent nature as ‘silent killers.’ Infected individuals may carry these viruses silently within their bodies for years, causing gradual damage to the liver without displaying noticeable symptoms.

He said that cleanliness and sterilized instruments play a vital role in avoiding the disease, adding, screened blood and blood products should not be used.

There are about 4 lacs people living with hepatitis C and around 27,000 die each year due to its complications, he mentioned.

Dr said that the government had set a target to eliminate the disease by 2030 and was making arrangements to carry out screening to identify the patients, adding, this is a serious problem.

The risks associated with the hepatitis C infection are grave, he explained, adding, it can cause liver cancer.

The risk of cancer is the same as smoking one pack of cigarettes daily, he added. This virus inflames the liver and leads to cancer, he said, adding that around 21,000 persons affecting with the disease of liver cancer in the country. Serious measures are needed to control the spread of hepatitis B and C, he stressed.

Replying to a question, he said that family history should not be ignored during the assessment of the patient, adding, that there is currently no effective vaccine against Hepatitis C.

He said that all children born to Hepatitis C-infected women should be tested for Hepatitis C from the age of 18 months.

Getting early detection and proper treatment is important and the only way, because the faster your hepatitis is under control, the better your liver will be,  he added.

He urged to control spread of hepatitis, government should make hepatitis screening certificates mandatory to be filled at the time of issuance of CNICs to citizens to know the actual number of patients infected with viral hepatitis in the country.