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  • New clinical trial opportunity available for people living with chronic hepatitis B virus infection

    … (about 2 years). You will not know whether you are receiving DAP/TOM or placebo, and neither will the doctor (until after the study ends). You will have medical visits throughout the study, where the doctor will check on hepatitis B viral activity and your overall health.  You may be eligible to participate in the B-United study if you:  Are at least 18 years old (the minimum age may be higher in some countries);  Have had diagnosed chronic hepatitis B virus infection for at least 6 months;   Have been on stable NA treatment (sometimes referred to as antivirals, such as tenofovir or entecavir) for the past 6 months, without any changes for the past 3 months.  You will also need to meet additional requirements. The study doctor will review these with you.  The B-United study is being run in many countries, so there is an opportunity for people in many areas of the world to participate. To find out more information and see if you might be eligible, please visit www.BUnitedStudy.com. 

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/new-clinical-trial-opportunity-available-people-living-chronic-hepatitis-b-virus-infection/
  • Special Film Screening: "Hilleman: A Perilous Quest to Save the World's Children"

    The Hepatitis B Foundation was excited to share a special film screening of Hilleman: A Perilous Quest to Save the World’s Children. Packed house at the film screening with opening remarks by Chari Cohen, DrPH, MPH The documentary film, produced by The Vaccine Makers Project, follows the unknown story of a man who “had more of an impact on [people’s] lives compared to Einstein.” The film tells the story of a courageous and gutsy scientist, Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman, and the elimination of diseases of children. With his unwavering determination, Dr. Hilleman invented the first-ever vaccine against a human cancer (the hepatitis B vaccine), developed the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) combination vaccine, and prevented pandemic flu. During World War II he developed an urgently needed vaccine for Japanese B encephalitis in 30 days.   The hepatitis B virus was also featured in the documentary. He is responsible for more than half of the vaccines children receive today and is credited with saving more than eight million lives every year. Now through exclusive interviews with Dr. Hilleman and his peers, rare archival footage, and 3-D animation, this new documentary puts a human face to vaccine science, revealing the character that drove this bold, complex, and heroic man. When parents began choosing not to vaccinate their children in the 1990s, a cruel irony became clear; Hilleman’s unprecedented successes have allowed us to forget just how devastating childhood diseases can be. The documentary reminds us by allowing us to see these diseases as part of the film. Chari Cohen, DrPH, MPH introducing the panelists. L-R: Timothy Block, PhD (Moderator), Donald Rayne Mitchell, David Oshinsky, PhD, Walter Tsou , MD, MPH, Paul Offit, MD Community members from Philadelphia and Bucks County came for the film screening as they enjoyed fun movie snacks. They also enjoyed a panel discussion moderated by Timothy Block, PhD, with the documentary director and esteemed

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/special-film-screening-hilleman-perilous-quest-save-worlds-children/
  • Is there any special diet for people living with chronic hepatitis B infection?

    In general, you want to be sure you are living a healthy lifestyle. Avoid alcohol and cigarettes. Eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, and get regular exercise. When possible, choose whole foods fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains, plant-based proteins (like tofu, grains, and peanuts), fish and lean meats. Avoid processed foods and limit sugary drinks (sodas and fruit juices) and foods with added sugar. Limit red and fatty cuts of meat and limit foods deep fried in unhealthy oils. Avoid processed meats (like hot dogs and deli meats). Make sure to buy your nuts from trusted sources, and to inspect the nuts and grains for any signs of Aflatoxin poisoning (moldy appearance and discoloration). Also be very careful with medications or herbal remedies and supplements. Some supplements and herbs can do more harm than good. Here is more information on how to maintain a healthy liver. Find more healthy liver tips on this episode of our B Heppy podcast with Dr. Jennifer Lai.  This guide is a comprehensive resource on the dos and don’ts while living with hepatitis B. 

    https://www.hepb.org/what-is-hepatitis-b/faqs/is-there-any-special-diet-for-people-living-with-chronic-hepatitis-b-infection/
  • Does everyone with chronic hepatitis B need to take medicine?

    Not everyone with chronic hepatitis B needs treatment. Every person should be carefully evaluated by a doctor with experience treating people living with hepatitis B. There are often few or no symptoms for decades, so the only way to know for sure is to get specific blood tests to learn more about your hepatitis B infection and the health of your liver. Tests may include Hepatitis B-specific blood tests such as HBsAg, HBsAb, HBeAg, HBeAb, HBV DNA, qHBsAg, Liver-specific blood tests such as those that check for liver damage (ALT/AST), and those that evaluate liver function. Diagnostic imaging such as ultrasound and/or Fibroscan may also be used to help determine the health of the liver.     Your doctor will also want to know if there is a family history of liver disease or liver cancer. An experienced doctor looks at the results of these tests in relation to each other to determine if you would benefit from currently available treatments. Your doctor might also refer to one of the professional Clinical Guidelines, developed by professional medical organizations to provide guidance to doctors treating people diagnosed or living with hepatitis B. You should also make sure to support your liver by following a healthy lifestyle, avoid alcohol, avoid smoking, eating healthy and getting regular exercise. Here is more information on how to maintain a healthy liver. The below medicines are the ones approved for treatment of hepatitis B. these medicines are not cure for hepatitis B. They work by controlling viral replication and consequently reducing the risk of liver damage. View our Treatment Options page for more information. Antivirals: Tenofovir disoproxil (Viread), Entecavir (Baraclude), Tenofovir alafenamide (Vemlidy), Lamivudine (Epivir). Interferons: Alpha or Pegylated forms.   Find more Frequently Asked Questions here.  Page updated 02/09/2022

    https://www.hepb.org/what-is-hepatitis-b/faqs/does-everyone-with-chronic-hepatitis-b-need-to-take-medicine/
  • Three Ways to Help

    Three ways to help the Hepatitis B Foundation and our research arm, the Baruch S. Blumberg Institute, today: There are multiple ways to support HBF and the Blumberg Institute and we want to help you figure out the way that works best for you.  Amazon Smile: If you’re shopping from home this week, please consider adding us as an Amazon Smile partner. It costs nothing to you and is an ongoing help the Hepatitis B Foundation and Blumberg Institute. Simply go to the link and search for “Hepatitis B Foundation” to add us. Share one of our #justB stories on social media:  When you share, you can use these hashtags: #justBproactive #Bthevoice #healthyliving #KnowHepB Join the Champions Club: Thanks to the recent passage of the CARES Act, every American can donate up to $300 tax-free, whether or not you itemize deductions. Join for as little as $3.00 per month and be a Champion! Many of Alan’s immediate family members passed away due to liver cancer, but it wasn’t until Alan himself became ill that the family realized the role hepatitis B played in these deaths. Alan talks about how stigma prevents open discussion about the virus and raises questions about the medical community’s failure to adequately address hepatitis B. He worries that continued silence will prevent others from knowing the same joy he experiences in his life.  [embed width="480" height="270" class="leftAlone" thumbnail="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8osyh0GZyR0/hqdefault.jpg?r"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=8osyh0GZyR0&feature=emb_logo[/embed]

    https://www.hepb.org/donate/ways-to-help/
  • Three Ways to Help

    Do you want to help? Here are three ways to help the Hepatitis B Foundation and our research arm, the Baruch S. Blumberg Institute, today: There are multiple ways to support HBF and the Blumberg Institute and we want to help you figure out the way that works best for you.  Join the Champions Club: Thanks to the recent passage of the CARES Act, every American can donate up to $300 tax-free, whether or not you itemize deductions. Join for as little as $3.00 per month and be a Champion! Amazon Smile: If you’re shopping from home this week, please consider adding us as an Amazon Smile partner. It costs nothing to you and is an ongoing help to the Hepatitis B Foundation and Blumberg Institute. Simply go to the link and search for “Hepatitis B Foundation” to add us.  Share one of our #justB stories on social media: When you share, you can use these hashtags: #justBproactive #Bthevoice #healthyliving #KnowHepB  The #justB storytelling campaign aims to raise the profile of hepatitis B as an urgent public health priority and helps put a human face on this serious disease by sharing stories of real people living with or affected by hepatitis B. The goals of the campaign are to increase awareness and advocacy; decrease stigma and discrimination; and promote testing, vaccination, linkage to care, and treatment to help save lives. Alan’s Story: [embed width="480" height="270" class="leftAlone" thumbnail="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8osyh0GZyR0/hqdefault.jpg?r"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=8osyh0GZyR0&feature=emb_logo[/embed] Many of Alan’s immediate family members passed away due to liver cancer, but it wasn’t until Alan himself became ill that the family realized the role hepatitis B played in these deaths. Alan talks about how stigma prevents open discussion about the virus and raises questions about the medical community’s failure to adequately address hepatitis B. He worries that continued silence will prevent others from knowing the same joy he experiences in his life. 

    https://www.hepb.org/donate/3-ways-to-help/
  • The Hepatitis B Foundation Participates in Liver Capitol Hill Day, 2013 - A Personal Reflection

    Yesterday the Hepatitis B Foundation participated in the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) annual “Liver Capitol Hill Day” visits. This is a great opportunity to get in front of state Senators and Congressmen in order to make requests known to them. It is also an opportunity to educate. As a constituent, your state representatives are interested in what you have to say. The “Asks” for the day were to support funding for liver related research, prevention strategies, and support of liver patient access to quality medical care.  Specifically, we were asking for NIH funding growth, rather than the 20% cut over the last decade, along with support of government agencies such as the CDC Division of Viral Hepatitis, and the delivery of health care systems and payment policies for patients living with liver diseases.  Prevention is also critical with specific asks for new, one-time hepatitis C testing and screening for hepatitis B for at-risk patients. As we are all aware, budgets are tight and we will all soon feel the effects of the Sequester. Research programs may no longer be funded, or severely cut, public health agencies and programs will be cut, and patients who are currently receiving medical assistance will suffer. For treated patients with HBV, it is essential nothing interrupts the daily antiviral use, and of course HBV and liver cancer prevention through screening, vaccination and surveillance is both necessary and cost effective in the long run. Due to the Sequester, the day started in a panic for many Hill visitors. I was fortunate to arrive early – a good thing since I waited in a long security line for 45 minutes that wrapped around the building. As Maryland residents, Dave Li and I met with staff from both Senator Ben Cardin’s (D) and Senator Barbara Mikulski’s (D) offices.  Senator Mikulski was recently appointed the Chairperson of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee. This means she will have a great deal of

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/the-hepatitis-b-foundation-participates-in-liver-capitol-hill-day-2013-a-personal-reflection/
  • Reflection on 2012 Viral Hepatitis Policy Summit Meetings in D.C.

    L-R Daniel Raymond, NVHR Chair, Congressional Champion Staffers: Jirair Ratevosian (Congresswoman Barbara Lee), Philip Schmidt (Congressman Joe Serrano), Adrienne Hallett (Senate LHHS Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Harkin) Earlier this week, I attended the 2012 Viral Hepatitis Policy Summit held in Washington D.C. The audience at the summit is viral hepatitis advocates for both hepatitis B and C. With the recent data on deaths from HCV surpassing those from HIV, and with an arsenal of new, effective drugs, HCV is clearly in the forefront of discussions at this time. Since my personal experience is HBVpatient oriented, I always struggle with keeping up with the details of the meetings, but I suspect most people reading this blog are in the same place, so I’ll try to make the take home message as simple as possible. The first day was held at NASTAD with visits from Dr. John Ward of the CDC, Division of Viral Hepatitis, and from Dr. Ron Valdiserri and Corinna Dan of the Health and Human Services (HSS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Infectious Diseases.  Everyone is anxiously awaiting the release of the CDCs updated hepatitis C screening recommendations. They will be coming out later than expected, and that is unfortunate because it is hoped they will be released in time to help drive the guidelines written by (US Preventive Services  Task Force)USPSTF, which helps determine what procedures will ultimately be covered by Medicare (and paid for by private insurance  companies as well.) As of now, it doesn't look like the USPSTF guidelines will include HCV testing for high-risk individuals, so it is hoped that the CDC recommendations will counter these guidelines to help improve future HCV screening rates in the U.S. This potential time bomb was a source of conflict throughout the entire two days of the summit. The other hot button was the $10million that was allotted to the Division of Viral Hepatitis  to carry out all tasks viral hepatitis

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/2012-viral-hepatitis-policy-summit-meetings-in-d-c/

  • CONTACT: Jenny Kimbeljenny.kimbel@hepb.org / 215-489-4900  Hepatitis B Foundation Co-Sponsors East Coast Film Premiere of Be About It Documentary about two families profoundly affected by hepatitis B will show at Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival on November 20 Doylestown, PA (November 2016) The Hepatitis B Foundation and AARP will co-sponsor a screening of the documentary Be About It as part of the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival this week. Be About It is the story of two families and their battle against the potentially life-threatening hepatitis B virus, which is the leading cause of liver cancer among Asian Americans. The screening is on Sunday, November 20 at 4:45 pm at the Asian Arts Initiative, 1219 Vine Street, Philadelphia. The documentary will be followed by a panel discussion featuring representatives from the Hepatitis B Foundation and its local coalition Hep B United Philadelphia, who will discuss how they are combating hepatitis B in Philadelphia and nationwide. Hepatitis B affects 1 in 12 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, but most do not know that they have it. Be About It follows two men who were both infected at birth, and the impact chronic hepatitis B infection has had on them and their families. The documentary, directed by Christopher Wong and created with support from Gilead Sciences as part of their Hep B Smart program, aims to end the silence associated with hepatitis B by encouraging families to talk openly and dispel myths about living with the virus. Hepatitis B is the most common serious liver infection in the world. An estimated 2 billion people worldwide, or 1 out of every 3, have been infected with the hepatitis B virus. Of those, more than 240 million people have become chronically infected, which means they are unable to rid their bodies of the virus. An estimated 700,000 people die each year from hepatitis B and its complications, including liver cancer. About the Hepatitis B Foundation: The Hepatitis B Foundation is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization solely dedicated to finding a cure for hepatitis B and improving the quality of life for those affected worldwide through research, education and patient advocacy. To learn more, go to http://www.hepb.org, read our blog at http://hepb.org/blog, follow us on Twitter @HepBFoundation, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hepbfoundation or call 215-489-4900. About Hep B United Philadelphia: Hep B United Philadelphia, established by the Hepatitis B Foundation, seeks to increase the visibility of hepatitis B and liver cancer as an urgent health priority by increasing hepatitis B testing and vaccination rates, particularly among at-risk communities, and involving and mobilizing stakeholders and policy decision-makers to improve access to care for both the prevention and treatment of hepatitis B and liver cancer. To learn more, go to www.hepbunitedphiladelphia.org.   # # #

    https://www.hepb.org/news-and-events/news-2/be-about-it/
  • Impressions of the Congressional Briefing and HHS Viral Hepatitis Action Plan Press Release

    Last Thursday, May 12th, I attended the Congressional Briefing, and the Press Conference releasing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Action Plan to Prevent, Care and Treat Viral Hepatitis, in Washington D.C..  The HHS Action Plan is in response to the 2010 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on viral hepatitis. I have been involved with viral hepatitis, specifically hepatitis B, from a patient perspective for over a decade, but my recent involvement in the political arena is new.   So, I’m still struggling with the numerous acronyms, political calendars and jargon… It was encouraging to see members of Congress in attendance at the Congressional Briefing - hosted by U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-MA) and Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA), but it is clear that viral hepatitis needs more champions in Congress.  Congressional leaders who spoke included Rep. Honda (D-CA) , Rep. Cassidy (R-LA), Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA), Rep. Dr. Christensen (D-VI), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), and Rep. Dent (R-PA).  Federal public health leaders Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary of Health, and Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention of the CDC  spoke regarding the direction and implementation of the plan. Congressman Honda’s message was loud and clear to the audience:  “You need to be the megaphone.”  As advocates we need to educate and get our representatives on-board. The other, clear message is that the plan is a strategy with the tactics not yet clearly defined.  More importantly, there is no clear funding dedicated to the roll-out.  Rep. Bill Cassidy, a hepatologist, tells us we must be “fiscally responsible”, and yet he also said “Sometimes you have to increase the budget to reduce the deficit”.  Rep. Donna Christensen, also a doctor, states:  "We can save money and reduce the debt" with the viral hepatitis plan.  As a hepatologist and physician, these representatives understand that money

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/impressions-of-the-congressional-briefing-and-hhs-viral-hepatitis-action-plan-press-release/