There is need for more awareness campaigns on hepatitis to help those infected seek early treatment, James Kamanzi, the director general of Rwanda Biomedical Centre, has said.

"Most people get to know that they are suffering from hepatitis after contracting diseases such as liver cancer. It is better for people to seek early medical examinations for better prevention of the disease,” Kamanzi said.

Hepatitis means injury to the liver with inflammation of the liver cells. The disease is mainly spread through unprotected sexual intercourse, blood and saliva. Sometimes there are no symptoms of hepatitis in the first weeks after infection – the acute phase. But when they happen, the symptoms of types A, B, and C may include fatigue, nausea, poor appetite, belly pain, a mild fever, or yellow skin or eyes (jaundice).

Speaking during activities to mark the World Hepatitis Day in Kicukiro, Kigali on Tuesday, Kamanzi called on the public to seek vaccination to prevent the disease.

An estimated 240 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis B

130–150 million people globally have chronic hepatitis C infection and approximately 500 000 people die each year from hepatitis C-related liver diseases according to statistics from the World Health Organization.

Kamanzi said the biggest challenge in combating the disease is that most carriers are not aware.

In Rwanda, although there are no statistics, Kamanzi said one of the main obstacles to its treatment is the high cost of drugs.

For example, the cost of treatment for Hepatitis C is estimated at Rwf10m, including lab tests.

For vaccination, an injection costs Rwf5,000 in hospitals. A person needs to be injected three times to complete a full dose over a period of several months, according to medics.

"We are doing everything possible to see the cost of treatment go down to enable all infected people access treatment. We advise Rwandans to go for checkups and immunisation against hepatitis as our target is zero deaths to this disease,” Kamanzi said.

Chantal Gegout, the World Health Organisation representative in Rwanda, said in Africa, hepatitis B affects an estimated 100 million people, while an estimated 28 million people succumb to it.

Viral hepatitis can be prevented using various approaches, including vaccines, Gegout said.

"In Rwanda hepatitis B vaccination has been introduced. However, everyone’s involvement, from health providers to the community, is vital in curbing its spread,” Gegout said.

She pointed out other preventive strategies against hepatitis B and C as ensuring safe blood transfusion, safe immunisation practices and strengthening infection control practices.

Dr. Ribakare Muhayimpundu, the acting division manager of HIV or AIDS, STI’s and other blood borne infections at the Rwanda Biomedical Centre, pointed out that diseases of the liver are mostly transmitted through blood.

Groups of people who are prone to contracting the disease include those who are HIV-positive, hotel workers, people who live with or care for someone who has the disease, and those who have multiple sexual partners.

Free immunisation for over a thousand people was done as part of activities to mark the day under the theme "prevent hepatitis and act now.”

The World Hepatitis Day is marked on July 28.

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