The Tennessee Department of Health sent out a public health advisory about the recent increase in the number of Hepatitis C cases in the state. The advisory was posted the TDH website one day before #WorldHepatitisDay.
State health officials encouraged residents to be informed about Hepatitis C and to have themselves tested for the Hepatitis C virus.
"The rate of acute Hepatitis C cases in Tennessee has more than tripled in the last seven years, and the steadily increasing number of cases may only represent 'the tip of the iceberg' of the state's Hepatitis C epidemic," said TDH Commissioner John Dreyzehner, according to the TDH website.
"In addition to reported cases of acute Hepatitis C, it is estimated that more than 100,000 Tennesseans may be living with chronic Hepatitis C and not know it. Many people have Hepatitis C for years, not realizing it, while the viral infection slowly destroys their livers," Dreyzehner added.
A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on May 8 states that there has been an increase in Hepatitis C virus infection particularly in the states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia from 2006 to 2012. The spike, which was observed in ages between 12 and 29, was attributed to intravenous drug use.
According to the CDC, Hepatitis C is "the most common blood-borne infection" in the U.S. Approximately three million people in the country are infected with the disease, but the CDC says only one in 10 cases is probably reported because the disease often does not display symptoms until it is too late.
On #WorldHepatitisDay, many people turn their attention toward Hepatitis C, which many refer to as a silent killer. Unlike Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C actually has a cure and treatment will take just several weeks. However, many people continue to suffer from the disease because the treatment is expensive.
A complete treatment of the drug Harvoni, which is manufactured by Gilead, costs almost $100,000. Sovaldi, another drug from Gilead, costs about $84,000 for a 12-course treatment. Even with Medicaid discounts, the treatments remain expensive. In Kentucky, the government spent about $50 million last year, eating up 7 percent of its Medicaid budget, in the treatment of just 861 people, according to The New York Times.
Without treatment, Hepatitis C virus damages the liver and makes it inefficient in filtering toxins. Sometimes, people with the disease succumb to liver failure and liver cancer. In 2013 alone, the disease accounted for 15,000 deaths in the U.S.
To prevent the spread of the disease, laws on needle exchanges are being implemented in several states. Regulating the use of needles, particularly in intraveous drug use, may be an effective preventive measure against the spread of the Hepatitis C virus while no cheaper treatment alternatives are available at this time.
"This really is our window of opportunity," said Lynne Saddler from the Northern Kentucky Health Department. "When you lay that out for people - look, we have a statutory responsibility to prevent the spread of diseases like this and here is a very effective tool - they start getting it," she added, according to The New York Times.
