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Nottingham leads the way in hepatitis C home-testing response
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust is leading England in a new home-testing scheme aimed at eliminating hepatitis C as a major public health issue.
Hepatitis C is transmitted through to blood-to-blood contact. People who have had medical procedures, tattoos or piercings, in countries or premises with poor infection control, those who had a blood transfusion pre-1992, and those who have shared drug-taking equipment are particularly at risk
Many don’t realise that they have the virus, as there are often no symptoms. Left untreated, however, and it can lead to liver disease and cancer.
The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to eliminate hepatitis C as a public health threat by 2025 – and these new tests will help England to be among the first countries to eliminate it as a major public health issue.
Free home-testing kits were introduced nationwide in May – and Nottingham has had the greatest return rate in England so far.
Anyone aged 18 and over can order the tests, which are sent in discreet packaging. The test requires a finger prick with a tiny blood sample dropped into a test-tube, returned in a pre-paid envelope for analysis: results are sent out within two weeks.
There is no vaccine for hepatitis C but direct-acting antiviral (DAA) tablets are effective at clearing the infection in more than 90% of people. The tablets are taken for 8 to 12 weeks.
Amber Copeland is the Viral Hepatitis Project Support Manager at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
“By increasing access to testing, we can diagnose and treat people for hepatitis C earlier, which in turn will help stop it being passed on,” she said.
The Viral Hepatitis Team will be planting a tree outside the Treatment Centre at Queen’s Medical Centre on Friday, 28 July, to mark World Hepatitis Day 2023. The QMC, City hospital, the Boston Stump, Nottingham Council House, and the Trent Building at the University of Nottingham will also be lit up purple that day.
To order your free test, please visit: hepctest.nhs.uk/ref/ntm1.