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The hepatitis C virus, whose discovery was awarded this Monday (5) by the Nobel Prize in Medicine, is responsible for a inflammation in the liver that progresses silently. The disease can become chronic before it often leads to cirrhosis and cancer, as well as death. in spite of there is no vaccine against infection, the disease has treatmentsee details further down this report).
Rated by the Nobel jury as a “major global health problem,” hepatitis C killed 400,000 people in 2015, and that year, 71 million had the disease in its chronic form, equivalent to 1% of the world’s population, it estimates. the World Health Organization (WHO).
The photo shows a panel of the Nobel Prize committee, this Monday (5), with information on viral hepatitis: the images show the difference between a healthy liver, one with chronic hepatitis, one with cirrhosis and one with hepatocellular carcinoma, a type organ cancer. The Swedish Academy awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine to the three scientists responsible for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus – Photo: Jonathan Nackstrand / AFP
Only one in five patients (19%) is aware of their disease, due to very limited access to screening and diagnosis, adds the WHO.
In France, it is estimated that almost one in three people do not know they are infected, according to the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm, in the French acronym).
After an acute, usually asymptomatic phase of infection, a minority of patients (15% to 45%) shed the virus spontaneously, but in the vast majority it is installed in the liver cells and the disease acquires a chronic form.
When they appear, symptoms are usually tiredness, dizziness, fever, malaise, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, yellowish skin and eyes, dark urine, and light stools.
However, hepatitis C remains silent for a long time – evolves for 10, 20, or 30 years before serious complications arise, such as cirrhosis or liver cancer. According to the WHO, among chronic patients, the risk of liver cirrhosis is 15% to 30% over a period of 20 years.
The disease is transmitted mainly by blood. Transfusions were once a major form of contamination, but since the development of a screening test, contagion in this way has been reduced to practically zero.
Today, the WHO estimates that 23% of new infections and 33% of deaths from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) are attributable to injecting drugs with non-sterile equipment.
The virus can also be transmitted during tattoos or piercings with dirty equipment or during sexual intercourse and from an infected mother to her child.
The photo shows a panel of the Nobel Prize committee, on Monday (5), with the image of a liver and effective antiviral treatments against hepatitis C. The Swedish Academy awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine to the three scientists responsible for the discovery of the virus . that causes the disease. – Photo: Jonathan Nackstrand / AFP
The treatment of hepatitis C was revolutionized in the early 2010s with the arrival of new “direct-acting” antiviral treatments capable of eliminate the virus in a few months in more than 95% of infected people, in particular sofosbuvir, marketed by the Gilead laboratory under the name Sovaldi.
These new treatments make hepatitis C “the only chronic viral disease that can be cured”, highlights Inserm. Since its onset, hepatitis C has been steadily declining in countries with access to treatment.
In France, 193,000 people had chronic hepatitis C in 2016, compared to 232,000 in 2011. In Brazil, a mathematical model developed in 2016 estimated that some 657,000 people had active hepatitis C virus infection, according to the Ministry of Health. Health: SUS has treatment for the disease.
In other parts of the world, however, its distribution is hampered by its high cost, although prices have fallen dramatically in recent years with the introduction of generic versions.
By the end of 2017, only 5 million people out of 71 million chronic patients had been treated with direct-acting antivirals, a far cry from the WHO target of treating 80% of infected people by 2030.
“To achieve this goal” and thus eradicate hepatitis C, “international efforts are needed to facilitate screening tests and make antiviral drugs accessible worldwide,” the Nobel committee stressed on Monday.
In total, there are five types of hepatitis: A, B, C, D and E. There are vaccines against two of them: A and B (in Brazil, they are covered by SUS). For type E, there is a vaccine developed and licensed in China, but it is not available worldwide, according to the WHO. Type D can only infect a person who already has the hepatitis B virus in their body.
The Ministry of Health recommends the following measures to prevent contamination by the disease:
- Do not share with other people any object that may have come in contact with blood (syringes, needles, tweezers, toothbrush, etc.);
- Use a condom during sex;
- Do not share any objects used for drug use.
In addition, all pregnant women should undergo prenatal testing for hepatitis B and C, HIV, and syphilis. In case of a positive result, it is necessary to follow all medical recommendations. Treatment of hepatitis C is not indicated for pregnant women, but the woman should receive treatment after delivery.
People who have the virus should:
- have your sexual and domestic contacts and first degree relatives tested for hepatitis C;
- do not share sharp objects and personal hygiene items or other items that may contain blood;
- cover wounds and open cuts in the skin;
- clean splashes of blood with a chlorine solution;
- do not donate blood or sperm.
People with hepatitis C can participate in all activities, including contact sports. further they can share food and kiss other people.
- Watch VIDEOS of the 2020 Nobel Prize announcements:
