New data from the University of Sydney's Kirby Institute suggests hepatitis C could be eliminated as a public health concern within the next decade.

So what is hepatitis C, and what is all the fuss about?

Hepatitis C is a virus that is transmitted when the blood of an infected person enters the bloodstream of another person. Over time, hepatitis C damages the liver and can cause hardening (fibrosis), scarring (cirrhosis), liver cancer and liver failure.

There is no vaccine and more than 200,000 Australians are living with the condition. There are about 10,000 new hepatitis C notifications each year.

Hepatitis C can now be cured quickly and easily in most cases. Previous generation hepatitis C medicines were arduous and far less effective, and relatively few people were treated.

However, on March 1 last year, then federal health minister Sussan Ley subsidised access to a number of life-saving drugs under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. From March to December 2016, about 30,000 people commenced treatment.

Over time it may be possible to eliminate hepatitis C as a public health concern, but we have a lot of work to do before that becomes a reality. We need to:

■ Upscale access to treatment in the community (through GPs and qualified nurse practitioners), and reduce reliance on expensive specialist-centric models of care.

■ Diagnose an estimated 40,000 Australians who currently don't know they have hepatitis C.

■ Prevent about 10,700 new infections each year with a focus on harm-reduction strategies such as needle and syringe programs, especially in prisons.

■ Re-engage the many Australians who have already been diagnosed with hepatitis C but who have not followed up.

The Kirby report shows that hepatitis C-affected Australians are embracing the new medicines. The cautionary tale is data showing that treatment initiations halved between March and September last year.

Support and information about hepatitis C and hepatitis B is available from Hepatitis ACT at www.hepatitisACT.com.au or by calling 62306344.

Response by: John Didlick, Hepatitis ACT executive officer

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