World Hepatitis Day or WHD takes place every year on 28 July and it is designed to raise awareness about viral hepatitis and to influence real change. WHD, endorsed by the World Health Organization, unites patient organisations, governments, medical professionals, and civil society, as well as the public, to boost prevention measures for fighting viral hepatitis like vaccination.
In the simple terms, hepatitis means injury to your liver due to inflammation. There are five main types of hepatitis and the type that you are suffering from is determined by a laboratory test. All the five main types of hepatitis are caused by viruses. Out of the five, Hepatitis C and B are quite big. Globally, around 250 million people are affected by hepatitis C and 300 million people are estimated to be hepatitis B carriers.
Fact sheet on hepatitis
Most liver damage is caused by 3 hepatitis viruses, and these are hepatitis A, B and C.
How do you safeguard yourself against infection from these three dangerous hepatitis viruses?
The most common cause of concer is that a lot of us who are infected with hepatitis, especially hepatitis B don’t know that we are. The biggest bulwark against hepatitis is periodic testing and vaccination. Vaccination is available for most hepatitis viruses including A and B, which tend to be extra virulent.
So, do take care and go for periodic testing. We are reiterating this because if you are infected with hepatitis B and are not treated you can develop serious problems of the liver, including liver cancer. In fact, nearly 1 in 4 people living with hepatitis B develop serious liver problems including liver cancer. Hepatitis B related liver cancer is a leading cause of fatality and getting tested for hepatitis can help you access life-saving treatments that can prevent serious liver damage.
Other ways to prevent hepatitis are
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis C
If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a doctor.