Hepatitis B

The Untold Story of a Silent Killer

 About Hepatitis
 The word “hepatitis” means inflammation
of the liver
 Hepatitis B (HBV) is a virus that infects
liver and causes liver cirrhosis and liver
cancer
 Silent Killer
 Most people with HBV do not have any
symptoms until it is too late

 1 in 4 adults with chronic HBV will die

from liver cancer or liver cirrhosis (WHO)
 HBV is transmitted by contact with blood
or body fluid from an infected person
 There are 10x more people with chronic
HBV than HIV/AIDS worldwide (WHO)
 HBV is 50-100x more infectious than HIV
(WHO)
 HBV can survive outside the body for at
least 7 days (WHO)
 Health Disparity
 HBV disproportionally affects Asian and
Pacific Islanders (API)
 1 in 10 Asian American has HBV.
 Liver cancer is the 2nd most common
cause of cancer death in Asian men
 Perinatal Transmission

 Most infections occur from mother to

child
 Over 90% of babies infected during
the first year of life develop chronic
infection (CDC)
 20,000 hepatitis B infected women
give birth each year in U.S. (CDC)
 HBV Vaccination
 Newborns born to infected mothers
should be vaccinated (1st dose vaccine +
HBIG) within 12 hours of birth
 3 vaccine doses: month 0, 1, 6
 Hepatitis B has been vaccine-
preventable since 1982
 Yet, 1 person still die every 30-45
seconds of HBV-caused liver cancer and
liver failure
 It is a silent epidemic!
 Adrian Elkins

 Adopted as an infant from India

 Received HBV vaccination upon
arrival to U.S
 Diagnosed with HBV only when
he was dying from liver cancer
at 20-years-old

http://www.hepb.org/patients/personal_stories_adrian.htm
 Mark Lim, MD
 Diagnosed with HBV at 26-year-old, but
was told by a doctor to not worry since
he was a "healthy" asymptomatic carrier
 Diagnosed with advanced liver cancer at
31-years-old
 Died before 32nd birthday

http://www.sfweekly.com/2002-05-01/news/dying-to-know/
 HBV Worldwide
 2 billion people worldwide (1/3 world
population) have been infected with HBV
(WHO)
 350 million people worldwide have chronic
(lifelong) HBV (CDC)
 1 million people die each year from liver
disease and liver cancer (CDC)
 Every 30–45 seconds, one person dies from
the vaccine-preventable HBV
 HBV in the U.S.
 1.2 million Americans have chronic HBV
(CDC)
 More than half are APIs
 5,000 Americans die each year from
hepatitis B-related liver disease (CDC)
 $700 million in medical and work loss
costs (CDC)
 What Can You Do?
 Get educated about HBV

 Get tested for HBV

 Get protected with HBV vaccine

 Break the Silence
 Read Know HBV brochure
 Talk to your family, friends, colleagues,
patients, and general public about HBV
 Write to House of Representatives to
support Viral Hepatitis and Liver
Cancer Control and Prevention Act of
2009 (HR 3974)
 References
 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hepatitis
Branch
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/index.htm
 World Health Organization
http://www.who.int/immunization/topics/hepatitis_b/en/index.
html
 Asian Liver Center at Stanford University
http://liver.stanford.edu/
 Team HBV Collegiate Chapters
http://teamhbv.org
 USF Asian Pacific Medical Student Association
http://hsc.usf.edu/medstud/apamsa/hepatitis.html
 For General Public
 Hepatitis B Foundation
http://www.hepb.org/
 American Liver Foundation
www.liverfoundation.org
 Tampa Bay Hepatitis & Liver Disease Support Group
http://thechancecenter.org/
 Hillsborough County Epidemiology Program Perinatal
Hepatitis B Prevention Program (PHBPP)
http://www.hillscountyhealth.org/epi/epi_main.htm
 For Health Professionals
 Physician’s Guide to Hepatitis B
http://liver.stanford.edu/Public/pguide.html
 CDC Interpretation of Hepatitis B Serologic Test Results
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/ProfResourcesB.htm
 CDC Recommended Doses of Hepatitis B Vaccines by Age Group and
Vaccine Type
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/HBVfaq.htm#recctbl
 CDC Recommendation for Routine Testing and Follow-up for Chronic
Hepatitis B Virus Infection
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/ProfResourcesB.htm
 Continuing Medical Education Courses on Hepatitis B
http://www.hepb.org/learning_guide/cme_course.htm
 The Florida Hepatitis Prevention Program Presents: Hepatitis 101
Training
http://www.doh.state.fl.us/disease_ctrl/aids/hep/
 Website: http://hsc.usf.edu/medstud/apamsa/

 Email: usfapamsa@googlegroups.com