Every year on 28th July, World Hepatitis Day is observed to raise global awareness of hepatitis and encourage prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Sydney Local Health District is reminding local communities of the importance of hepatitis B testing for early diagnosis.

“Testing for hepatitis B can’t wait. Many people in our community are still unaware they may be living with chronic hepatitis B,” said Professor Benjamin Cowie, director of the Australian WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis at the Doherty Institute.

“Without care and treatment, hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. Still in 2022 worldwide, a person dies every 30 seconds from a hepatitis related illness. Early diagnosis and timely treatment are the key to prevent these tragic outcomes. The only way to find out whether you have hepatitis B is to get tested,” added Professor Cowie.

Currently in NSW, nearly 80,000 people are estimated to be living with chronic hepatitis B, while only less than 27% are receiving regular care and treatment. Community members born overseas are disproportionately affected.

The Are you living with hepatitis B? Find Out. Get Tested campaign encourages people from diverse communities to get tested for hepatitis B and look after their liver health. Campaign messages are available in English, Arabic, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese.

“We are here to help our diverse communities take care of themselves and look after their liver health,” said Barbara Luisi, Director of Diversity Programs and Strategy Hub. “Our campaign gives quick access to culturally appropriate information so people can make informed decisions and take action.”

“We encourage community members to ask their doctor about hepatitis B and book a test. Hepatitis B testing is free if you have a Medicare card. If you don’t have a Medicare Card, most NSW Health Sexual Health Clinics can offer free testing. In Australia, all conversations with your doctor remain private,” added Ms Luisi.

For interviews in language, please call Sonam Paljor at 0436 649 000 or email Cette adresse e-mail est protégée contre les robots spammeurs. Vous devez activer le JavaScript pour la visualiser.

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Early diagnosis helps people get effective HIV treatments in time and reduces the risk of passing on HIV to others.

Data released by NSW Health shows HIV testing rates dropped in 2021 due to COVID-19 disruptions.

“Now that we are getting out of pandemic lockdowns, it is important that people at risk of HIV return to their routine, regular HIV testing habits” said Professor David Templeton, Head of Sexual Health Medicine at Sydney Local Health District, based at RPA Sexual Health.

“In Australia, we are on the cusp of eliminating HIV transmission thanks to our success in diagnosing and treating HIV early, which reduces HIV transmission to close to zero. In addition, we have high numbers of people at risk of HIV taking HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP. Just one pill a day prevents them from catching HIV. However, certain populations in our community such as recent overseas arrivals and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are missing out. Regular testing for HIV is crucial to reaching our goal of ending HIV by 2030,” said Prof Templeton.

Sydney Local Health District is encouraging local communities to come back to their doctors and resume their critical liver health checks. “Now is the time to take care of ourselves and look after your liver health. If you are living with chronic hepatitis B, getting tested and finding whether you have hepatitis B is part of it. Without treatment, chronic hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. Postponing your hepatitis B test may delay life-saving treatment,” said Barbara Luisi, Director of Diversity Programs and Strategy Hub.

The Are you living with hepatitis B? Find Out. Get Tested campaign developed by the Diversity Programs and Strategy Hub encourages people from diverse communities to get tested for hepatitis B and look after their liver health. Starting May 2^nd, the month-long state-wide campaign across ethnic newspaper, radio and social media campaign aims to raise awareness of hepatitis B testing and treatment across the Arabic-speaking, Chinese-speaking, Korean, Sub-Saharan African, and Vietnamese communities living in NSW.

In Australia, it is estimated 230,154 people are living with chronic hepatitis B, with less than 10% receiving treatment (Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity report 2019). It is estimated 296 million people are living with hepatitis B in the world, with nearly 90% of them unaware that they are infected (World Health Organization report 2019). Therefore, a large proportion of Australians living with chronic hepatitis B are still undiagnosed, with a large representation of affected people being born overseas.

“We are encouraging community members to ask their doctor about hepatitis B and book their hepatitis B tests. Testing is free if you have a Medicare card. If you don’t have a Medicare Card, most NSW Health Sexual Health Clinics can be a free option. In Australia, all conversations with your doctor remain private,” Ms Luisi said.

Visit our multilingual Hepatitis B Testing Options Page for more information. A multilingual resource toolkit, which includes the campaign digital and hard copy resources is available on the campaign webpage.

For radio interviews in language, please call Sonam Paljor at 0436 649 000 or email Cette adresse e-mail est protégée contre les robots spammeurs. Vous devez activer le JavaScript pour la visualiser.

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