October 2022
Free webinar on Oct. 20:
Taking care of your liver after a hepatitis B diagnosis
October is Liver Cancer Awareness Month!

Nearly 300 million people around the world, including up to 2.4 million in the U.S., are living with chronic hepatitis B infection. Untreated chronic hepatitis B can cause liver failure, liver cirrhosis and even liver cancer. Please join Hep B United for an important presentation on “Taking Care of Your Liver After A Hepatitis B Diagnosis.”


Oct. 20 at 1 p.m. EDT and 10 a.m. PDT. Please register here.
Join us for the Witte Lecture with a leading hepatitis B expert
The 2022 Bruce Witte Lecture, "HBV: expanding treatments guidelines: where are we and where are we going?" will be presented by Robert G. Gish, MD.  

Weds., Nov. 9, 2022
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT
Hepatitis B Foundation,
Timothy M. Block Research Campus 

This is a free event. Online participation only requires that you register in advance. In-person attendance is limited.
Please register here. 

Liver Cancer Awareness Month
Every year in October the world recognizes
Liver Cancer Awareness Month.

This is an important health observance because almost 300 million people worldwide are living with hepatitis B, which puts them at higher risk for developing liver cancer. 

Learn more here.
Consult corner:
What should I do if I am diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B?
Welcome to Consult Corner, where we answer some of the most commonly asked questions!

This month's question: "What should I do if I am diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B?"

If you test positive for the hepatitis B virus for longer than 6 months, this indicates that you have a chronic hepatitis B infection. You should make an appointment with a hepatologist (liver specialist) or gastroenterologist familiar with hepatitis B. This specialist will order blood tests and possibly a liver ultrasound to evaluate your hepatitis B status and the health of your liver. Your doctor will probably want to see you at least once or twice a year to monitor your hepatitis B and determine if you would benefit from treatment. Keep reading here.

Read more about this and other Frequently Asked Questions here.

If you're interested in learning more about topics like this, please join the HepBcommunity online forum here.
"Alarming" statistics" in U.S. report
The Hepatitis B Foundation is raising alarm about findings from a new U.S. viral hepatitis surveillance report. The new analysis from the CDC shows that major COVID-related disruptions in hepatitis B testing and significant health equity concerns about the virus' impact on the Asian American/Pacific Islander community.
Please read more here.
Run4TeamHepB Runners Spotlight: Axel Tismer
Our Run4TeamHepB is training hard for the TCS New York City Marathon on Nov. 6, 2022!

We’ve been highlighting each one of our dedicated runners so you can meet the team and join them to raise awareness and funds for those living with hepatitis B. 

Feel free to share these posts to help get the word out!

Next up, meet Axel Tismer!
  • Who: Amazing marathoner seeking his 15th medal!
  • Where: Resides in NYC
  • When: Nov. 6, the 51st NYC marathon 
  • Why: Axel says “It’s not too often that I get to combine my personal and professional and public health goals! Working in biotech for the past 20 years, and now at VBI Vaccines, my goal is to improve public health.”

We say, Thank you, Axel, for all your hard work and dedication to our cause. Both your scientific and fundraising contributions are invaluable in helping more than 300 million people living with chronic hepatitis B worldwide.

For more info and to help Axel reach his goal, please go here.
Liver cancer and hepatitis B vignettes
provide a human insight into liver treatment
Two new blogs are vignettes about the people living with hepatitis B and liver cancer, and how their thoughts about hep B affected their health. Read both blogs here:


Third Hepatitis B Community Forum is a success
Researchers and people living with hepatitis B met in Paris and online for the third Hepatitis B Community Forum as part of the international HBV Meeting. The Forum is an annual public awareness event co-hosted by the Hepatitis B Foundation and ICE-HBV to provide a powerful conclusion to the International HBV Meeting.

Read more and watch the forum here.
Watch the International HBV Meeting with post-event access
Nearly 600 scientists, clinicians and others from 31 countries attended the 2022 International HBV Meeting last month. You can access all of the groundbreaking content for $199. Learn more here.

We also have videos from the event that you can watch for free:
#justB Well-Informed: Chelle's story
As a child, Chelle grew up struggling with stomach problems that went undiagnosed. When she was 18, she learned she has hepatitis B after trying to donate to a military blood drive.

Chelle faced isolation, stigma and discrimination in her personal and professional life, including when the military moved her from the medical field to a supply career. More than three decades later, Chelle is back in the medical field, and all of her kids were successfully vaccinated against hepatitis B at birth. Watch Chelle's video here.
New "B Heppy" podcast:
You Are Not Alone - Mental Health and Hepatitis B
This episode discusses #justB Storyteller's David's mental health journey within his hepatitis B diagnosis. We talk about experiencing fears related to hepatitis B and how David empowered himself after those initial scary feelings. Listen for more.

You can find the podcast episodes here or anywhere you get your podcasts.

AND, if you'd like to suggest a topic for B Heppy, please send an email to info@hepb.org.
Hepatitis B Foundation's publication pick of the month
Evaluating the cost-effectiveness of hepatitis B vaccination strategies
in high-impact settings for adults
The authors of this study conducted a cost-utility analysis to examine ways to conduct vaccination in a number of high-risk settings: syringe service programs, community outreach events with a large proportion of immigrants, drug and alcohol abuse treatment centers, jails and clinics for sexually transmitted infection (STI) and tuberculosis (TB).

They used a sophisticated framework to compare life years and cost in 2021 U.S. dollars from four strategies: a three-dose vaccination regimen with pre-vaccination screening and testing (PVST; baseline comparison), PVST at the initial encounter followed by a two-dose series (intervention one), PVST with the first dose of a two-dose vaccination series at the initial encounter (intervention two); and a two-dose vaccination series without PVST (intervention three).

In all settings, the first intervention resulted in worse health outcomes than the baseline comparison. The second intervention averted incident chronic HBV infections in all settings and reduced costs without a higher risk of infection. Providing a two-dose vaccination series without any screening, the third intervention, averted incident HBV infections and was cost-saving in all circumstances but resulted in more HBV-related deaths in some settings. The authors concluded that a two-dose vaccine series is a cost-effective approach in these high-impact settings, with or without pre-vaccination testing.

Note: You can find additional recommendations for relevant new journal articles here.
Nov. 2 - Blumberg Institute Distinguished Speaker Seminar
Keith R. Jerome, MD, PhD

Nov. 3 - Blumberg Institute Distinguished Speaker Seminar
James Shorter, PhD

Nov. 9 - The 2022 Bruce Witte Lecture
Robert G Gish, MD

Nov. 17 - Regional Biotechnology Conference
Learn more about our research and education programs at www.hepb.org
The Hepatitis B Foundation is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for those affected by hepatitis B worldwide. Our commitment includes funding focused research, promoting disease awareness, supporting immunization and treatment initiatives, and serving as the primary source of information for patients and their families, the medical and scientific community, and the general public.
Hepatitis B Foundation I 3805 Old Easton Road Doylestown, PA 18902 I
215-489-4900 I info@hepb.org