The Atlanta based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning Americans to be aware that deaths from liver-destroying hepatitis C are on the rise, and support groups in D.C. are trying to pass on the message.
New data shows baby boomers (anyone born between 1945 and 1965) especially should take heed because they are most at risk.
Medcal organizatons like the CDC and DC Department of Health are advising people to get a one-time blood test to check if their livers harbor this ticking time bomb. Two-thirds of baby boomers are in this group, and most are unaware that a virus that takes a few decades to do its damage has festered since their younger days.
"The good news here in D.C.," said Raymond Alverez, who is a Washingtonian and has hepatitis C, "we've been doing Hep C testing consistantly for a long time."
There are two new drugs that had hit the market last summer. They both promise to cure many more people than ever was possible. Vertex Pharmaceuticals' telaprevir and Merck & Co.'s boceprevir, the drugs in question, research suggests adding one of them to standard therapy can boost cure rates as high as 75 percent. While still full of side effects, they can allow some people to finish treatment in just six months. They add to the price, however, another $1,000 to $4,000 a week. Drugs that promise to work even better have begun testing.
CDC hepatitis chief researcher Dr. John Ward has recently sad, "One of every 33 baby boomers are living with hepatitis C infection and most people will be surprised, because it's a silent epidemic."
About 3.2 million Americans are estimated to have chronic hepatitis C, but at least half of them may not know it. The virus, which affects 170 million people worldwide, can gradually scar the liver and lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer. It is a leading cause of liver transplants.
Perhaps more surprising, three-fourths of the hepatitis deaths occurred in the middle-aged, people 45 to 64, researchers reported in Annals of Internal Medicine.
CDC's current guidelines recommend testing people known to be at high risk, and until last summer there wasn't much enthusiasm even for that step: the reasons are the year-long, two-drug treatment promised to cure only 40 percent of people; treatment was so grueling that many patients refused to try it and treatment could cost up to $30,000.
In the District off Columbia there are several support groups to help those with Hep C. Below are a couple:
Washington D.C. Hepatitis Support
Address
St. John's Church
Lafayette Square
Washington, DCContact: 703.257.1425 and ask for Robert Volck American Liver Foundation - Greater Washington ChapterAddress
620 B Old Georgetown Road
Washington, DCPhone:732-821-5522
Hepatitis C (HCV) was formerly called non-A, non-B hepatitis and is an RNA virus. It is not related to any virus that cause hepatitis.
Usual mode of transmission is through blood and blood products, including:
- IV drug users and renal dialysis patients
- Sexual intercourse
- Theoretically, through contaminated piercing and tattooing tools and ink
- Sharing a razor or nail-clipper with the patient that is infected.
- Incubation period varies from 1 week to several months.
- About 35,000 new cases of Hepatitis C are reported in the United States each year.
- HCV is the most common reason for liver transplantation.
- Approximately 50% of HCV develop to chronic liver disease and at least 20% progress to cirrhosis
Prevention:
- Always screen blood and blood products for blood-borne diseases.
- Always practice safe sex.
- Never re-use needles for injections. Always open a new sterile syringe and discard properly after u se.
- Educate adolescents about the risk of piercing and tattooing in transmission of HCV.
To learn more about the D.C. Department of Health, please check out their website.
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