Haves and have nots
Existing hepatitis B drugs suppress viral replication, which stops
progressive liver disease, allowing the liver to recover. The antiviral
drugs can reverse cirrhosis, and reduce the incidence of liver cancer by
50-70 per cent. But the vast majority of the 350 million people
worldwide with chronic hepatitis B do not receive treatment.
One of the antiviral drugs, tenofovir, is also used in the treatment of
HIV, and funding support from international financing organisations such
as the Global Fund and the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS
Relief has made it available for people living with HIV in extremely
resource-challenged settings in the Asia-Pacific region.
“But the tragedy is that tenofovir is not made available for people
living with hepatitis B. So, you can have the dichotomy whereby someone
living with HIV is readily able to access free tenofovir for the
treatment of their HIV, but his next-door neighbour who is dying of
cirrhosis or has progressive liver disease and is at significant risk of
liver cancer is unable to access the drug,” Cowie says.
Read more.... Labels: access to treatment, Asia-Pacific, Millenium Development Goals (MDGs), tenofovir, WHO