NHS England new Hepatitis C screening programme

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The Guardian reports that NHS England is about to start a new screening programme for Hepatitis C. It is part of the WHO global goal to eradicate the disease by 2030. The scheme uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) to screen health records for a number of key risk factors, hoping to identify people living unaware of them being infected.

[think before following links] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jul/31/exclusive-nhs-to-use-ai-to-identify-people-at-higher-risk-of-hepatitis-c

Hepatitis C is a viral liver infection that has little to no noticeable symptoms until severe liver damage has occurred. Caught early enough the disease can be cured by modern treatments.

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Hepatitis C is usually spread through blood-to-blood contact. It can be spread by sharing unsterilised needles – particularly needles used to inject recreational drugs.

 

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The scheme, due to begin in the next few weeks, aims to help people living with hepatitis C get a life-saving diagnosis and access to treatment before it is too late.

The NHS will identify people who may have the virus by using AI to scan health records for a number of key risk factors, such as historical blood transfusions or an HIV diagnosis.

Anyone identified through the new screening process will be invited for a review by their GP and, if appropriate, further screening for hepatitis C. Those who test positive for the virus will be offered treatment available after NHS England struck a deal with three major pharmaceutical companies.