Hepatitis C deaths in India: With over a crore cases estimated, is India equipped to tackle the disease?

In a hall packed with doctors, last week in Chandigarh sat a few patients, old and young, male and female, on the fringes. They were shy and reticent, relegated to a corner in the air-conditioned room, until their names were called out. One by one they lined up and collected their certificates which declared them free of Hepatitis (Hep) C infection, but warned of a relapse, and also advised follow ups. Punjab is one of the two states in India, the other one being Haryana, which provides free Hep C, drugs to its patients. One may wonder, why such a big hullabaloo over this viral infection? Why single out Hep C for a discussion on access to free treatment? What is so unique about the virus?

After a patient’s immune system is attacked by the Hep C virus, the virus has an ability to lodge in the patient’s body silently, hibernating for many years, as many as twenty. It is a silent killer. The disease flares up without a signal or a sign and directly progresses to blow apart the liver, rendering it as much as 85% damaged, what we call ‘cirrhotic,’ in medical jargon. Liver being the powerhouse of …read more