Creation of a European Internet information on the website hepatitis C
On the occasion
of the European Day of awareness of hepatitis C, the federation "SOS
Hepatitis" announced the launch of a European Internet information on the
disease www.Hep-links.com site.
Designed by a
group of patient organizations from a dozen European, African and Middle
Eastern countries, this site includes information about hepatitis C, but also
the most frequently asked questions and responses, as well as contact details
of associations existing patients and links to sites that can help the patient
who often feel isolated, says federation president Michel Bonjour, in a
statement.
He recalled that
"40 to 50% of those infected do not know it, but today we can cure
hepatitis C". "In France, 5,000 infections occur each year, 80% among
users of intravenous drugs and 5,000 people die at the same time following a
hepatitis C".
In total,
600,000 people in France were infected with hepatitis C. The World Health
Organization (WHO) estimates that worldwide, the number exceeds 170 million.
However,
one-fifth of people with chronic hepatitis C is a risk of developing cirrhosis
after 10 years of evolution. Cirrhosis exposes patients to complications such
as gastrointestinal bleeding, severe liver dysfunction and especially liver
cancer whose risk is estimated at 5% of cirrhotic patients.
Three groups of
people were identified as particularly at risk of infection: users of
intravenous drugs, people who have been transfused and those followers of
piercing and tattooing.
Detected in
time, hepatitis C can be cured. In 85% of cases after six months of treatment
for patients with genotype 2 and 3, and in 50% after one year of treatment for
patients with genotype 1. But "even if the virus is not eradicated, the
treatment is useful: the patients 'bad genotype' and do not respond to
treatment have their liver to improve a histological point of view and thus
avoid a possible evolution to liver cancer, "said Michel Bonjour.
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