 |
An estimated 3 million new
cases of hepatitis C occur globally each year. |
|
| |
|
|
|
An estimated
30,000 new cases of hepatitis C occur each year in the U.S. |
| |
|
|
|
Approximately 80% of people
exposed to the hepatitis C virus become chronically infected. |
| |
|
|
|
Most people with chronic
hepatitis C are unaware that they are infected because HCV is
often asymptomatic until advanced liver damage develops. |
| |
|
|
|
There is no vaccine to protect
against hepatitis C (unlike hepatitis A and B). hepatitis C is
the leading cause of chronic liver disease in the U.S. |
| |
|
|
|
Chronic liver disease is among
the top 10 killers of Americans age 25 and older, and HCV is
the underlying cause of 40-60% of such disease. Chronic liver
disease is the 4th most common cause of death in people age
45-54 years, and 7th among those 35-44 years and 55-64 years. |
| |
|
|
|
Approximately 20% to 30% of
people with chronic hepatitis C develop cirrhosis. Each year,
1% to 4% of people with HCV-related cirrhosis develop liver
cancer. 50% to 76% of Heptocellular Carcinoma (primary liver
cancer) is directly related to HCV. |
| |
|
|
|
The incidence of liver cancer
in the U.S. More than doubled between 1975 and 1998. The
number of new cases of liver cancer and the associated number
of liver cancer deaths are expected to double again in the
United States over the next 10 to 20 years. |
| |
|
|
|
hepatitis C is the leading
cause of adult liver transplantation in the U.S. |
| |
|
|
|
Since 1990, the number of
people with HCV who underwent liver transplantation increased
over twelve-fold. |
| |
|
|
|
An estimated 10,000 to 12,000
people die each year in the U.S. of hepatitis C disease. |
| |
|
|
|
The number of hepatitis C
deaths each year in the U.S. is greater than the number of
deaths caused by melanoma, cervical cancer, uterine cancer,
thyroid cancer, or Hodgkin’s lymphoma. |
| |
|
|
|
Approximately 25-30% of
Americans with HIV/AIDS are co-infected with the hepatitis C
virus. |
| |
|
|
|
HIV/HCV co-infected persons
have twice the risk of cirrhosis and a six-fold increased risk
of liver failure compared to people with HCV alone. |
| |
|
|
|
HCV-related end-stage liver
disease is now a leading cause of death among HIV-positive
persons. |
| |
|
|
|
Without intervention,
complications associated with HCV-related cirrhosis are
projected to increase dramatically by 2020: liver failure by
106%, liver cancer by 81%, and liver-related deaths by 180%. |
| |
|
|
|
The Centers for Disease and
Control states that 2 out of every 100 Health Care Workers
will become infected. This does not include those who were
infected before OSHA guidelines were in place for wearing
gloves and safety needles. |
| |
|
|
|
18% of military veterans are
infected, 64 % of Vietnam Veterans are infected. |
| |
|
