Hepatitis C epidemic

Pakistan’s resilience in healthcare has been questionable and unidentifiable since time immemorial. But, what is more concerning are the periodic spikes in health crises stemming from catastrophes like natural climate disasters and mismanaged healthcare system leading to unavoidable epidemics and endemics.

It comes as no surprise that Pakistan leads the world in viral Hepatitis C infections. In 2016, the WHO pledged to eradicate hepatitis C virus as part of the 2030 Strategy. However, the condition was placed in timely diagnosis and treatment with direct-acting antivirals. In Pakistan, despite the availability of direct-acting antivirals, accompanied by subsidised treatments, the pervasiveness of Hepatitis C remains intact, with no evidence of decline, so much so that we now top the world in the prevalence of the disease.

Egypt has become a gold-tier awarded country set to achieve complete eradication of Hepatitis C by 2030. Pakistan, on the contrary, is already on decline in healthcare system and offers no hope for reversion of the situation. One of the primary reasons for this plight is the absence of a comprehensive, wide-reaching screening programme to identify the disease, especially in a timely fashion. As thousands of new patients are added every year to the pool of the virus, not enough is offered for their treatment due to delayed initial diagnosis of Hepatitis C signs and symptoms.

The national plan developed to combat Hepatitis C by the Imran Khan government demonstrated high level of political and professional leadership commitment. The plan aimed to align diagnosis and treatment of the infection with parallel healthcare measures such as screened blood transfusion and organ transplants. Today, as Pakistan jolts the world by topping all in the prevalence of the disease, the ambitious plans and policy that Pakistan once boasted redefine the country’s eligibility in crisis management.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 19^th, 2024.

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