World Hepatitis Day is marked globally on 28 July. The world comes together in an effort to eliminate viral hepatitis by 2030. At the same time, it’s a reminder that hepatitis C and liver health remain important issues for our community.
In 2026 the national theme was Take the next step, a message to take the next step for your health, no matter where you are in your journey.
Why is this relevant to people with bleeding disorders?
And whether we have had hep C or not,
Find out 5 ways to keep your liver healthy at www.haemophilia.org.au/healthy-liver.
You may be aware that in Australia many people with bleeding disorders acquired hepatitis C from treatment with blood products before 1993. Several safety measures were introduced by 1993 and the risk of hep C or HIV from plasma-derived clotting factor products in Australia is now extremely low. But many people in our community live on with the consequences of those early infections.
It’s important to share the message that if you ever had a blood product to treat your bleeding disorder before 1993 – even once – you could be at risk. This includes women who carry the gene for haemophilia and people with mild bleeding disorders who are over 33 years of age.
Nearly 1 in 5 Australians with hepatitis C have never been diagnosed and don’t know they have hep C. Symptoms are not always obvious.
Hep C blood tests to find out your hep C status are free. This is very simple – a telehealth appointment through HepLink (www.heplink.au) or a GP or HTC can organise it. And if you do have hep C, you can have treatment to be cured.
If you are cured of hep C, how well has your liver recovered?
It’s important to know whether you had cirrhosis or extensive scarring before being cured of hep C.
If you did, you will still need to have a liver ultrasound scan every 6 months long-term. This is to screen for liver cancer – which has a much better outcome if picked up on screening and treated early.
If you don’t know, check your liver test results with the doctor who managed your hep C treatment.
Sadly, some people with bleeding disorders have very advanced liver disease due to long term hep C infection. Close liaison between liver specialists and Haemophilia Treatment Centres is important for treatment and care. Research into management of advanced liver disease is ongoing.
Q: Can I have gene therapy if I’ve had hep C?
A: Yes – as long as you have been cured or you are HCV PCR negative (no active virus in your blood) and your liver is showing signs that it is functioning normally.
Talk to your doctor about this and they may refer you to a liver specialist for some tests to show that your liver is healthy:
~ a liver assessment with an ultrasound
~ a fibrosis assessment via FibroScan® or another non-invasive assessment such as shear wave elastography or ARFI (Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse)
~ and blood tests.
If you are treated with gene therapy for haemophilia, your liver function will be monitored as part of routine care.
There are things you can do to prepare your liver for gene therapy.
Visit the Keeping your liver healthy page to find out more.
Advice from hepatitis specialists Assoc Profs Simone Strasser and Joe Sasadeusz and haematologists Prof Huyen Tran, Dr Liane Khoo and Dr Jane Mason.
Visit
As a Partner in the national World Hepatitis Day Campaign, HFA works with Hepatitis Australia and the state and territory Haemophilia Foundations on the awareness campaign for the bleeding disorders community and is committed to making a difference on hepatitis C in Australia.
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