October is Liver Cancer Awareness Month!

Please join the Hepatitis B Foundation and others in recognizing that liver cancer is a serious consequence of untreated hepatitis B.

Chronic hepatitis B can lead to liver failure, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer.

Liver cancer rates are rising around the globe, and the 300 million people worldwide living with hepatitis B are at increased risk. With a five-year survival rate for liver cancer of just 18%, raising awareness about prevention and early detection is critical. Spread the word and prioritize liver health this October!

Learn more about the connection between hepatitis B and liver cancer here.

5th Annual Hepatitis B Community Forum

The annual International HBV Meeting, the world’s top scientific conference on hepatitis B, this year began with a Community Forum on Sept. 11 that focused on people living with hepatitis B, including the patient voice. If you weren't able to join us online or in person, you can view the recording here. Please read more here.

International HBV Meeting draws hundreds of scientists

Scientists from around the world came to Chicago last month for the 2024 International HBV Meeting. Organized annually and staffed by the Hepatitis B Foundation, the event focused on advances in the science of hepatitis B, applied research aimed at developing new treatments for the disease and new research techniques that can boost such work, such as artificial intelligence or AI.

Eight scientists from the Blumberg Institute, which is the Foundation's research arm, participated in the meeting. Dr. Liudi Tang, assistant professor, gave an oral presentation on his research and four Blumberg scientists gave poster presentations. Dr. Chari Cohen, president of the Foundation; Dr. Ju-Tao Guo, the Institute's acting president; Louis Kassa, CEO of those organizations; and Dr. Thomas Shenk, a board of directors member, also participated in the four-day meeting.

The Hepatitis B Foundation has been selected as an Official Charity Partner of the 2024 TCS New York City Marathon.   

We're proud to introduce our #Run4HepB team Aaron Rak, Ben Gulliver, Bailey Vogel, Justin Chen and Lara McCusker.   

Please support the #Run4HepB team and donate today, click here.

Take a look at our new video.

New Blog Post: Lived experiences of clinical trials and how patient insights can improve equity in process and outcomes

Authors: Lori Scott, Amanda Goldring, Joe Balestreri, Philip Kwame Yeboah, Kenneth Kabagambe and Prince O. Okinedo

Patient involvement in research means they are included as active partners in all stages of the research process. Patient participation in clinical research is crucial for informing patient recruitment and retention efforts that can ultimately speed up the development and potential market availability of medicines and diagnostics. In the end, patients are the intended recipients of the products of clinical research, and if patients are actively involved in research, they can effectively improve outcomes. 

B Heppy Podcast:

Wendy's journey as a hepatitis B patient advocate

In this episode, Bright and Anousha invite Wendy, a #justB storyteller with the Hepatitis B Foundation to share valuable insights about the journey towards patient advocacy and the challenges that come with it. Listen to the podcast here.

Take a look at these helpful resources that were mentioned in the Podcast.

• Watch Wendy's #justB story here.
• Learn how to become a patient advocate with Wendy Lo, here.

Survey: COVID-19 vaccine perspectives

Place consider contributing your time and experience to an important study that focuses on underrepresentation of specific populations in clinical trials for the

COVID-19 vaccine!  

• What’s the study about? We want to gain a better understanding about factors that influenced your willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and how different information sources impacted your decision to get vaccinated or not.
• Eligibility: Age 18 or older, of African, South-East Asian, Western Pacific, or Latin American origin.
• Survey details: Your responses will be anonymous and the survey takes less than 25 minutes!  

Your insights will help public health and research organizations develop effective communication strategies tailored for your community, which can help enhance inclusion and diversity in future drug development studies! 

Please share your thoughts on future hepatitis B treatment

Are you age 18 or over and living with hepatitis B and interested in sharing your thoughts on future treatment? The Hepatitis B Foundation wants to know what you think about different strategies for possible future administration of hepatitis B treatment.

Your responses to our anonymous online survey will help inform future drug development for hepatitis B. We would like as many people as possible to complete the survey!

All responses will be kept anonymous and confidential. The 20-minute survey is available in English, Tagalog, Mandarin, Spanish and Arabic. Please click one of the languages to complete the survey in the language of your choice. If you have any questions, please email Yasmin Ibrahim at Yasmin.Ibrahim@hepb.org.

The hepatitis B birth dose is crucial for preventing new infections in newborns, offering lifelong protection and reducing the risk of chronic hepatitis B. However, access remains limited in many low- and middle-income countries due to lack of awareness, costs, transportation challenges, and insufficient political support. Many communities and healthcare providers lack knowledge about the virus and vaccine benefits. Advocacy is needed to improve access and education, and GAVI's new initiative aims to expand vaccine availability in high-need areas. Please read more here.

Point-of-care testing is progressing in the U.S.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently posted a proposed rule, “Microbiology Devices; Reclassification of Antigen, Antibody, and Nucleic Acid-Based Hepatitis B Virus Assay Devices,” down-classifying hepatitis B screening and diagnostic tests from class III to class II. This increases the likelihood that point-of-care (POC) testing for hepatitis B in the U.S. will be made available, which is instrumental to improving access to testing for the disease. For nearly two years, the Foundation and partners have been advocating for reclassifying screening tests for hepatitis B. Please read more here.

Note: The value of POC testing is addressed in a journal article below.

Availability of point-of-care HBV tests in resource-limited settings

The Lancet: Gastroenterology & Hepatology

Sept. 18, 2024

Laua D, Jackson K, Picchio C A, Kramvise A, Sonderupf M, Lemoineg M, et al

https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-1253(24)00308-X

www.thelancet.com/journals/langas/article/PIIS2468-1253(24)00308-X/fulltext

This article describes results of an online survey focused on the priorities and challenges in delivering hepatitis B point-of-care testing in resource-limited settings. Point of care tests are important to diagnosing hepatitis B, but availability and accessibility challenges remain. This study confirms that significantly improving point of care testing will be a necessary part of successful hepatitis B elimination efforts.

• Oct. 7 - Hepatitis B Therapeutics Summit, B+labs, Philadelphia
• Oct. 17 - Webinar: Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Resource-Limited Settings
• April 4, 2025 - Hepatitis B Foundation Annual Gala