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  • Is the hepatitis B vaccine safe?

    Yes, the hepatitis B vaccine is a safe and effective vaccine. In fact, it is the first “anti-cancer vaccine” because it can protect you from hepatitis B, which is the cause of 60% of all liver cancer in the world. It only takes 3 shots to protect yourself and those you love against hepatitis B for a lifetime. if you live in the United States and are 18 years old or older, there is a 2-dose vaccine available. Ask your doctor about the right vaccine type for you. With more than one billion doses given throughout the world, medical and scientific studies have shown the hepatitis B vaccine to be one of the safest vaccines ever made. Find more Frequently Asked Questions here.  Page updated 05/09/2022

    https://www.hepb.org/what-is-hepatitis-b/faqs/is-the-hepatitis-b-vaccine-safe/
  • Home

    A national nonprofit dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for people affected by hepatitis B worldwide The Hepatitis B Foundation is working on every front to improve the lives of people living with hepatitis B.

    https://www.hepb.org/
  • Edwin's Story

    Edwin contracted hepatitis B through exposure to blood from his mother during childbirth. Even though he knew she had hepatitis B, he grew up not understanding the serious effects the virus could have on his health. In 2017, during a routine check-up, his doctor informed that his liver was damaged, and that he needed to lose weight, eat healthier, and exercise regularly to prevent cirrhosis. Resolved, Edwin changed his diet, started running, and lost 35 pounds over the following year. Now he trains for and competes in Ironman triathlons to raise awareness and funds to find a hepatitis B cure.  

    https://www.hepb.org/research-and-programs/patient-story-telling-project/edwins-story/
  • Hep B United Coalition

    Elimination of hepatitis B is the ultimate goal of the Hepatitis B Foundation and the focus of our public health programs. To achieve this goal, we have developed successful community-based programs to increase vaccination, screening and linkage to care to stop the spread of hepatitis B, and established a national coalition of groups working on the issues across America.   NEWS: CDC awards $1.375 million, 5-year grant to Hepatitis B Foundation for expansion of Hep B United About Hep B United HBF, in partnership with AAPCHO (Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations), created and co-chairs Hep B United, a national coalition of 30+ member coalitions in 29 cities and 23 states, that are working to address hepatitis B in their local communities. With our leadership, Hep B United members are finding success in bringing together key stakeholders such as community-based organizations, healthcare providers, hospitals and clinics, state and local health departments, student groups, and elected officials and community leaders to increase HBV awareness, screening, vaccination and linkage to care in high-risk communities.    Hep B United is also proud to be an official partner of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is co-branded with its Know Hepatitis B campaign, their first national multi-lingual awareness campaign on hepatitis B.   To learn more about Hep B United, visit www.hepbunited.org.  

    https://www.hepb.org/research-and-programs/hep-b-united/
  • Which is Worse Chronic Hepatitis B or C? What Do You Think?

    From HBF’s expert Guest Blogger, Dr. Thomas London… If you ask doctors in the United States, or patients with liver disease, or the average person on the street, the answer that you usually get is that Hepatitis C is worse.  Hepatitis C has a bad reputation in the media and with the public. We, at the Hepatitis B Foundation, tend to think that hepatitis B is the worse disease, but until now we have not had any basis for that answer. Now we do. Recently a group of investigators from Johns Hopkins University published a paper with the title “Comparative Risk of Liver-Related Mortality from Chronic Hepatitis B Versus Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection”.  The answer from this publication is that hepatitis B is more likely to cause liver related death than hepatitis C.  It is worth dwelling on how the authors came to this conclusion: unexpectedly, the AIDS epidemic triggered the studies, which made the conclusion possible. Acquired immune deficiency disease (AIDS) was first reported in the United States in 1981. The disease appeared to be deadly, and it was thought-to-be confined to homosexual men. In fact, it was initially called Gay Related Immune Deficiency or GRID.  Although it was soon proven that this new immune deficiency disease was not limited to gay men, it is true that men who had sex with men (MSM) accounted for most of the early cases.  In the 1970’s there were several reports that MSM had a high incidence of hepatitis B.  For the initial clinical trial of the then new hepatitis B vaccine, MSM in New York City were selected as the study population because of their high risk for hepatitis B infection. In the trial about 27% of the unvaccinated population became infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) within 18 months, whereas less than 3% of the men who received the vaccine became infected over the same time interval.  This result proved the efficacy of the vaccine. Fast forward to 1984 before the virus causing AIDS was clearly identified,

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/which-is-worse-chronic-hepatitis-b-or-chronic-hepatitis-c-what-do-you-think/
  • The Hepatitis B Foundation Mourns the Loss of Dr. R. Palmer Beasley

    Dr. Palmer Beasley (center), with his wife Dr. Lu-Yu Hwang at his side, received the HBF's Distinguished Scientific Award from Dr. Timothy Block (left) and Nobel Laureate Dr. Baruch Blumberg, HBF co-founder (far right) in 2010. The Hepatitis B Foundation mourns the loss of a great hepatitis B champion. Dr. R. Palmer Beasley. The Hepatitis B Foundation was proud to have honored Dr. Beasley with the Distinguished Scientist Award 2010, at HBF’s annual Crystal Ball. Dr. Beasley’s groundbreaking research discoveries in Taiwan included identifying mother-to-infant hepatitis B transmission, and the fatal link between hepatitis B and hepatocellular carcinoma (primary liver cancer). Additionally, Dr. Beasley’s initiation of a national hepatitis B immunization program has protected a generation of people in Taiwan against hepatitis B and liver cancer. Dr. Timothy Block, President and Co-Founder of the Hepatitis B Foundation wrote: “Our cause has lost another great one with the passing of Palmer Beasley. He was passionate and visionary in working to advance hepatitis B awareness and research. His work with the HBV vaccine, particularly in Taiwan, is considered definitive and as having set the stage for saving millions of people. The HBF recognized him as our honoree in 2010, and for that, I am glad.” The Washington Post obituary of Dr. Beasley, dated August 5th, presented a wonderful review of some of Dr. Beasley’s many accomplishments and touches on his unique personality. Please see the reprint below - Adventurous, meticulous and intensely curious about the world and its people, Dr. R. Palmer Beasley, epidemiologist and infectious-disease expert, used those skills to discover the link between the hepatitis B virus and liver cancer — proof that a virus could cause a human cancer, and a finding that ultimately led to vaccinations that saved hundreds of thousands of lives. Dr. Beasley, a former University of Washington faculty member and dean of the University

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/the-hepatitis-b-foundation-mourns-the-loss-of-dr-r-palmer-beasley-hepatitis-b-expert/
  • Kat's Story

    Kat’s father has hepatitis B, but nobody in the family is willing to talk about it. For years, they weren’t allowed to share the same chopsticks or eat dinner with him. As Kat grew older, she learned how hepatitis B is actually spread and shared this information with the family. She also began doing outreach and education to teach other immigrants about how hepatitis B is contracted, and what resources exist for screening and care. Kat's story is available in English and Mandarin.   English   Mandarin

    https://www.hepb.org/research-and-programs/patient-story-telling-project/kats-story/
  • Dreams on Hold - A personal story of an aspiring medical student

    … devastating news. At that moment I had to juggle not only my new medical diagnosis, but also the fact that I had a lease that could not be cancelled or sublet, a full year without any plans, and uncertainties about my future. The nightmare still lingers. However, 
I am slowly getting back on my feet. The antivirals are lowering my viral load. I am working in public health and reapplying to medical schools. My future is still uncertain. Note: This story is one of the four cases that galvanized the Hepatitis B Foundation into action. At a June 2011 meeting convened by the CDC, the HBF and other national thought leaders worked with the CDC to update their 1991 hepatitis B recommendations for health care workers and students, which were just updated, July 2012. It is hoped that the newly Updated CDC Recommendations for the Management of Hepatitis B virus- Infected Health Care Providers and Students  guidelines and advocacy efforts of HBF and others will make a dent in hepatitis B based discrimination.  Please note that these newly revised guidelines strongly state that hepatitis B is not a condition that should prevent anyone from entering or practicing in health care.

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/dreams-on-hold-a-personal-story-of-an-aspiring-medical-student/
  • Dr. Tom London - Hepatitis B and Liver Cancer

    Hep B Talk is pleased to introduce Guest Blogger W.Thomas London, MD. Dr. London is internationally renowned for his many decades of work on hepatitis B and liver cancer, which started with his joining the research team  that discovered the hepatitis B virus. Dr. London has been at the forefront of liver cancer prevention and has written extensively about hepatitis B from the perspective of an epidemiologist, a clinician and a virologist. As founder and director of the Liver Cancer Disease Prevention Division at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, PA, he  developed one of the first successful community-based strategies to help people reduce their cancer risk through the early detection of chronic HBV infection. Dr. London has received the Distinguished Interdisciplinary Research Award  from the American Cancer Society and the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Hepatitis B Foundation where he currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Board and as the Senior Medical Advisor.   Liver cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is the 3rd most common cause of death in the world.  Little attention was paid to HCC in the United States until recently because it was thought to be rare, but now it is one of the few cancer types that is rising in incidence (number of new cases per year). It is now the most rapidly increasing cancer in men in the US. The prognosis of HCC is poor; one year survival in the United States from the time of diagnosis is only 50%.  Detection of tumors when they are very small, less than 2 cm in diameter, and can be removed surgically is the best chance for cure.  Liver transplantation is often done if there is more than 1 tumor and the cancers are less than 3 cm in diameter.  Unfortunately, most HCCs are diagnosed when they are too large for successful surgical resection or transplantation. Chemotherapy for HCC has been disappointing. Recently, the drug, Sorafenib (Nexavar), has been shown to be active against HCC, but it only extended

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/dr-tom-london-hepatitis-b-and-liver-cancer/
  • United and Strong...

    I have the best job in the world. I get to walk all around Philadelphia, meet people, and talk with them to find win-win collaboration opportunities. Creativity and innovation are required at all times for adaptations to the ever-changing environment in a diverse and bustling city. My schedule is rarely the same from one week to another—productive late night meetings and well-attended weekend health fairs make me happy. I am never bored. Community work on the local level is challenging, yet extremely rewarding. This is the level where the lack of resources can be felt most significantly. This is also the level where the fruit of our efforts are the most direct and observable. Being the program manager for Philadelphia’s local hepatitis B coalition, driving day-to-day progress to accomplish the coalition partners’ common goals, has caused me to place high value on partnership and collaboration. There is a Chinese idiom that says “three ignorant cobblers together exceed a Zhuge Liang”. Zhuge Liang was a genius war strategist during the Three Kingdom era at the turn of the 2nd Century. The idiom emphasizes the importance of collective wisdom. Since our community partners are smart and savvy, and could never be described as “ignorant cobblers”, our collective wisdom and effort have achieved great things and made significant impacts in the Philadelphia community—even with the limited resources available to us. Imagine my excitement when the individual local grassroots hep B campaigns from around the U.S. came together and decided to form a national coalition—Hep B United (the Philadelphia campaign becomes Hep B United Philadelphia). Having a formal national coalition will help local campaigns to become more versatile and more effective, both collectively and individually. Having a national coalition means there will be a unified body of leaders that are connected to the local efforts. They will be able to work with federal and national partners without

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/united-and-strong/