Sharon Hodgson: Hepatitis C is the silent killer that we can and must eliminate

A threat to public health affects about 100,000 people in England, about 214,000 in the United Kingdom and about 71 million worldwide. He is often known as the "silent killer" because his symptoms are subtle and often go unnoticed; but left to become chronic, it can lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer. He can kill you, but he's stealthy.

Hepatitis C (HCV) is a virus transmitted through the blood, transmitted by blood to the blood. Most often, this happens by sharing needles when injecting drugs, through an unsterilised tattoo or medical equipment. Because it affects current and former drug users and people from immigrant communities, especially those from South Asian countries, it often affects some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

This is bad news. A rarity in the world of health, hepatitis C is curable. Moreover, it is possible to eliminate it. This means that we should aim to reduce HCV infections by 80% in order to achieve elimination as a threat to public health. Like smallpox, it could be destroyed and, as Minister of Public Health, I believe we have an obligation to do so.

Medicines available on the NHS can cure the disease in 95% of cases. With effective treatments we are already seeing a reduction in mortality and the need for liver transplants. Action against hepatitis C can save the NHS money when it needs it the most.

But the problem is that few people know it, whether it is the disease or the cure. Current estimates suggest that about 40% to 50% of all patients remain undiagnosed, unaware that they carry the disease. Quite simply, we can not treat people if we do not know who they are.

The British government has subscribed to the World Health Organization's goal of eliminating the virus by 2030; NHS England aims to be the first country in the world to do so by 2025. That's good news, but I'm also committed to ensuring that my counterpart in the government keeps an eye on the ball.

In Parliament, regarding the elimination of hepatitis C, the Minister of Public Health, Steve Brine, said that he was ready to be "taken to the feet" for this disease. I have the intention to do it. But for the elimination to succeed, everyone must get involved and do their part to raise awareness and combat the stigma that persists with this disease.

I still remember advertising campaigns in the 1980s, trying to wake people up to the end. dangers of HIV and AIDS. Shock tactics provoked widespread fear, but they drove people to action. With HCV, you do not have the terrifying prospect of discovering that you have an incurable disease and that you can not do anything about it.

With the approach of World Hepatitis Day, there has never been a better time to tackle this disease. This means that anyone who may have been exposed to the virus should be screened. Do not accept stereotypes and avoid stereotypes.

The rock star Lou Reed lived with hepatitis C for many years because of drug use early in his career. Anita Roddick, the founding pioneer of The Body Shop, has lived with hepatitis C for two decades before being diagnosed; she believed that she had contracted her as a result of a blood transfusion in the 1970s.

This must not be the case now. I will do my utmost to ensure that the government respects its promises regarding hepatitis C. And I urge all of you to make the disease known and to go beyond it. We have a unique chance, once a generation, to eliminate a major threat to public health. Let's make that happen.

Sharon Hodgson is Shadow Minister for Public Health and Member of Parliament for Washington and Sunderland West