THE sheer scale of the crisis is staggering. A new WHO report flags Pakistan as the country with the highest number of hepatitis C cases in the world and fifth overall in terms of the prevalence of the hepatitis B and C variants combined. With a total of 12.6m reported cases, of which 8.8m are of the C variant of the viral disease, and potentially millions more that remain undiagnosed, the country clearly has a severe health crisis on its hands. However, despite the fact that nearly 5pc of Pakistan’s population suffers from hepatitis B and C and trends show an increase in prevalence over recent years, the crisis is not being discussed enough, even though these diseases are preventable with a few precautions and treatable in many cases with medical interventions. Instead, the transmission of these viruses continues to increase because proper sterilisation techniques are largely not followed. Reused syringes, transfusion of unscreened blood and inadequate sanitary conditions can become the cause of disease transmission in healthcare settings. Elsewhere, seemingly innocuous items, such as a barber’s inadequately sterilised razor, can become the medium of transmission of the disease.

Pakistan must take inspiration from Egypt. Over the last decade or so, Egypt has been able to slash hepatitis C prevalence from over 10pc of its population to about 0.38pc. The WHO director general has ascribed its success to utilising “modern tools and political commitment at the highest level to use those tools to prevent infections and save lives”. It is worth pointing out that, in previous years, Egypt used to rank ahead of Pakistan in terms of hepatitis B and C prevalence. However, starting in 2014, the country launched a national campaign offering free testing and treatment for hepatitis C. It tested more than 60m people and treated more than 4m, of which 99pc were cured with locally manufactured antiviral treatments. Its enviable progress was made possible thanks to the rigorous implementation of improved patient safety practices and the implementation of universal injection and blood safety procedures. This is precisely the approach Pakistan needs to adopt. The country has already demonstrated its capabilities in handling national-level health emergencies during the Covid-19 outbreak. Health authorities must now treat endemic hepatitis B and C with the same level of urgency and eliminate these painful and potentially deadly diseases with the same urgency.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2024