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STORY: WHO / HEPATITIS C GUIDELINES
TRT: 2.09
SOURCE: WHO / FILE
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 9 APRIL 2014, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / RECENT
FILE – 2012, CAIRO, EGYPT
1. Wide shot, Cairo city, Egypt
2. Wide shot, patients resting in hospital
3. Close up, medical equipment
4. Close up, patient’s hand
9 APRIL 2014, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephan Wiktor, team leader WHO Global Hepatitis Programme:
“Hepatitis C can be cured. There are treatments that are getting better and better. So the newest treatments cure more than 90% of people with Hepatitis C. However, very few people are getting those treatments for a number of reasons. For that reason WHO felt important now to issue guidance that would provide clear recommendations to decision makers and to health care workers, primarily in low and middle income countries to help them in planning how to scale up treatments services and how to deliver these services.”
FILE – 2012, CAIRO, EGYPT
6. Med shot, medical staff working in laboratory
7. Close up, laboratory’s equipment
9 APRIL 2014, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephan Wiktor, team leader WHO Global Hepatitis Programme:
“These WHO guidelines have recommendations on screening, how to diagnose patients for Hepatitis C; on care, how to keep them healthy as long as possible; and on treatments, which treatments are the most appropriate for different people. In addition though, it’s important to remember that prevention is a key element that we’re also promoting and are also in the guidelines.”
FILE – 2012, CAIRO, EGYPT
9. Various shots, pharmacy inside the hospital
9 APRIL 2014, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephan Wiktor, team leader WHO Global Hepatitis Programme:
“Science is one thing and these guidelines are based on the soundest evidence we have, but that’s not enough. We have to turn these into actions and we will be working with countries through country teams to adapt the guidelines so that they become part of national treatment programmes. But also Headquarters is working to ensure that we have the tools that we need to make these programmes real, that the laboratory tests are available and of high quality; and that the drugs are as affordable as possible. Currently the medicines are very expensive and it’s going to take concerted actions, concerted efforts on a number of organisations working together to bring these prices down so that as many people who need these medicines can receive them.”
FILE – 2012, CAIRO, EGYPT
11. Various shots, Cairo city, Egypt
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued its first guidance for the treatment of hepatitis C, a chronic infection that affects an estimated 130 million to 150 million people and results in 350,000 to 500,000 deaths a year.
The new guidelines make nine key recommendations. These include approaches to increase the number of people screened for hepatitis C infection, advice as to how to mitigate liver damage for those who are infected and how to select and provide appropriate treatments for chronic hepatitis C infection.
Stefan Wiktor, who leads WHO’s Global Hepatitis Programme, said “hepatitis C can be cured. There are treatments that are getting better and better. So the newest treatments cure more than 90% of people with Hepatitis C.”
“However”, he added, “very few people are getting those treatments for a number of reasons. For that reason WHO felt important now to issue guidance that would provide clear recommendations to decision makers and to health care workers, primarily in low and middle income countries to help them in planning how to scale up treatments services and how to deliver these services.”
Wiktor explained that the WHO recommendations are based on a thorough review of the best and latest scientific evidence.
He said “these WHO guidelines have recommendations on screening, how to diagnose patients for Hepatitis C; on care, how to keep them healthy as long as possible; and on treatments, which treatments are the most appropriate for different people. In addition though, it’s important to remember that prevention is a key element that we’re also promoting and are also in the guidelines.”
WHO will be working with countries to introduce the guidelines as part of their national treatment programmes. WHO support will include assistance to make the new treatments available and consideration of all possible avenues to make them affordable for all. WHO will also assess the quality of hepatitis laboratory tests and generic forms of hepatitis medicines.
The WHO expert also said “science is one thing and these guidelines are based on the soundest evidence we have, but that’s not enough. We have to turn these into actions and we will be working with countries through country teams to adapt the guidelines so that they become part of national treatment programmes. But also Headquarters is working to ensure that we have the tools that we need to make these programmes real, that the laboratory tests are available and of high quality; and that the drugs are as affordable as possible.
Wiktor underlined “currently the medicines are very expensive and it’s going to take concerted actions, concerted efforts on a number of organisations working together to bring these prices down so that as many people who need these medicines can receive them.”
Hepatitis C virus is most commonly transmitted through exposure to contaminated blood. Those at risk include people undergoing invasive medical procedures and therapeutic injections where there is poor infection control. Also at risk are those exposed to contaminated injecting and skin piercing equipment, including through injecting drug use, tattooing and body piercing.
