The 11th Canadian Symposium on Hepatitis C returned on May 13 as part of the 2022 Canadian Liver Meeting. Convened by the Canadian Network on Hepatitis C (CanHepC), the theme of the day was clear: getting back on track toward hepatitis C elimination.
Rwanda is a country situated in sub-Saharan, eastern Africa with a high population density: 499 people per square kilometre in 2018 and a population of 12.6 million people in 2019, an increase of 2.64% from 2018. Although it is among the poorest countries in the world and experienced a genocide against the Tutsi people in 1994, Rwanda has made immense progress in the fields of public health, achieving its Millennium Development Goals for population health, such as reduction of under-five mortality and maternal mortality.
This June, CATIE and the Canadian Network on Hepatitis C (CanHepC) co-hosted a webinar on sustaining the hepatitis C response before and after the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. We invited leaders in the hepatitis C field to explore the challenges that the pandemic has posed for hepatitis C elimination efforts, but also the opportunities that could be leveraged. Here are just five of the ways we can do this:
In 2018, I had the opportunity to spend time in Iran profiling an innovative hepatitis C treatment project for people who use drugs. In partnership with Iranian and Australian researchers and local service providers, I interviewed a number of researchers, clinicians and patients to showcase their success at curing hepatitis C despite stigma and other barriers. As an Australian filmmaker, I have spent much of my working life telling stories of social change with communities throughout Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Yet stories from Canada and North America had remained the most unknown to me.
In 2019, we saw significant developments in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of HIV and hepatitis C. We helped launch a blueprint for hepatitis C elimination in Canada. We witnessed innovation in HIV prevention and testing approaches, more people cured of hepatitis C, and “the London patient”, the second person cleared of HIV after discontinuing antiretroviral therapy. We also saw drawbacks. We continue to confront a devastating opioid overdose crisis driven by a poisoned drug supply, which claimed the lives of more than 2,000 Canadians in the first six months of the year alone.
Hundreds of clinicians, researchers and people with lived experience gathered in Montreal in September 2019 to highlight promising work in hepatitis C research and practice. The 8th International Conference on Hepatitis Care in Substance Users (INHSU 2019) showcased innovative models of care that support the delivery of hepatitis C treatment.
