Advocacy groups work to bring viral hepatitis to global consciousness

The National Viral Hepatitis Task Force (NVHTF), the Viral Hepatitis Foundation (VHF), and the Hepatology Society of the Philippines (HSP) came together in March for a Hepatitis B consultative meeting. The meeting brought together hepatitis experts from around the world to discuss the different means of working together to bring awareness to the increasing risks and burdens of hepatitis B both in the Philippines and around the world.

“Raising public awareness and pushing legislation for hepatitis awareness and patient rights is the dream for us,” Dr. Diana Payawal, HSP current president and executive council member of Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL), shared. “It is a milestone in our society to get experts together to truly push forward hepatitis awareness in the country.”

The meeting brought together experts from around the world in the field of hepatitis that included Dr. Robert Gish, Dr. Stephen Locarnini, and Dr. Noel Fajardo from VHF and Dr. Karen Hennessy from the World Health Organization (WHO). Each expert shared his/her experiences and ideas on how to achieve the goal of raising more hepatitis awareness and get funding for more integrative care.

“These meetings are very important to help propel and catalyze change,” Dr. Gish said. “We have to work together to raise money and to help raise the standard of hepatitis care. All action plans need to be implemented and funded. These types of meeting can help change policy and improve vaccines, screenings, and linkages to experts worldwide,” he added.

Indeed, change needs to happen to address the rising rate of hepatitis in the Philippines and around the world. Hepatitis B and C are deadly diseases, with a high prevalence rate for hepatitis B and lower but steadily increasing prevalence for hepatitis C in the Philippines. Studies show that in the Philippines there is a hepatitis B carrier rate of 9-12%, as Dr. Jose Sollano Jr. shared with the panel. This means that out of 10 people at least 1 is a carrier of hepatitis B. It is estimated that more than 14 million people are chronically-infected with hepatitis B, of whom between 1.1 and 1.9 million are expected to die prematurely of cirrhosis or liver cancer.

Major changes need to be made including providing comprehensive information to the public and the medical community as well as lobbying for the rights of hepatitis patients and ensuring accessibility and availability of vaccines and hepatitis treatment. At the meeting, both doctors and patients were represented, as members of the Yellow Warriors, the hepatitis patient support group in the Philippines, were also present to give their insights and opinions. Chris Munoz, vice president of the Yellow Warriors, said in his speech “Through the organization, we hope to help ease the burden of hepatitis patients by sharing our stories and raising awareness against discrimination in the country.”

Zero discrimination in the workplace is one of the ultimate goals for hepatitis patients in the Philippines and something HSP together with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has worked hard to achieve. Many patients have lost the opportunity to work and support themselves because they could not get jobs because of their disease. “Discrimination is such an important issue to address,” Dr. Gish stated. “This discrimination is what prevents people from being open about the disease and thus prevents the real success of real change.”

“The Philippines has a large population and birth cohort but it is not meeting the vaccine targets of providing vaccine within first 24 hours of life,” Dr. Karen Hennessy of the WHO, shared. “That’s definitely something that needs to be addressed moving forward. We have to make the most of the good vaccine available in the fight against the disease.” This is a step that both the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) and the Philippine Pediatric Society (PPS) – both of whom were represented at the meeting – are definitely going to look into for 100% future compliance.