Evaluating the impact of improving hepatitis C treatment on liver cancer rates
Background
The global burden of chronic hepatitis C (HCV) infection is increasing, and in Australia an estimated 230,000 people are living with chronic HCV. Hepatocellular cancer is the most common type of liver cancer, and is often caused by chronic HCV. In Australia, liver cancer rates have escalated over the last decade and this has been driven by an ageing population, and suboptimal treatment uptake. Fortunately, there has been a recent revolution for HCV treatment in the form of oral therapies. These drugs provide a greater than 95% cure rate, can be taken for a short amount of time, and have limited side effects. The Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme now covers these oral drugs, which is expected to lead to a ten-fold increase in HCV treatment.
The research
This project will evaluate the impact of improved HCV treatment on liver cancer incidence and survival.