Two years after a task force recommended testing all baby boomers for the Hepatitis C virus (HCV), a new report finds that testing rates among that group are still very low.
Approximately 3.5 million people in the United States have chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Most of those (80%) are “baby boomers” (born between 1945 and 1965), and most of them are unaware of their infections despite availability of treatments that may reduce their risk of HCV-related diseases, including chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver cancer.
The numbers are sobering: While the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 3.2 million Americans are currently infected with the Hepatitis C virus (HCV), the World Health Organization (WHO) further estimates that a staggering 130–150 million people globally have a chronic HCV infection and that 350 000 to 500 000 people die each year from HCV-related liver diseases.
