WHO calls for stepped up action to eliminate viral hepatitis

• Global efforts to combat viral hepatitis are delivering measurable progress in reducing infections and deaths, but the disease remains a major global health challenge, according to a new World Health Organisation (WHO) report released at the World Hepatitis Summit.

• Viral hepatitis B and C — the two infections responsible for 95 per cent of hepatitis-related deaths worldwide — claimed 1.34 million lives in 2024, the latest data show. 

• At the same time, transmission continues, with more than 4,900 new infections every day, or 1.8 million each year.

• The 2026 Global hepatitis report documents significant gains made since 2015. 

• The annual number of new hepatitis B infections has dropped by 32 per cent and hepatitis C-related deaths have fallen by 12 per cent globally. 

• Hepatitis B prevalence among children under five has also decreased to 0.6 per cent, with 85 countries achieving or surpassing the 2030 target of 0.1 per cent.

• These achievements reflect the impact of sustained, coordinated global and national action following the adoption of WHO viral hepatitis elimination targets by Member States at the World Health Assembly in 2016. 

• However, the report warns that current rates of progress are insufficient to meet all 2030 elimination targets, underscoring the urgent need to accelerate prevention, testing, and treatment efforts worldwide.

Viral hepatitis

• Viral hepatitis — types A, B, C, D, and E — are major causes of acute liver infection. 

• Hepatitis B is a viral infection that attacks the liver. It can be spread through contact with infected body fluids such as blood, saliva, vaginal fluids and semen, or passed from mother to baby. 

• Disease can be acute or chronic, with chronic infection raising risk of death from cirrhosis and liver cancer. 

• Hepatitis C is an inflammation of the liver caused by a virus of the same name. Transmission is spread through exposure to infected blood from unsafe injections, such as sharing needles and syringes or unscreened blood transfusions. 

• Among these only hepatitis B, C, and D can lead to chronic infections that significantly increase the risk of cirrhosis, liver failure, or liver cancer. 

• Yet, most people with hepatitis don’t know they are infected. 

• The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recently classified hepatitis D as carcinogenic to humans, just like hepatitis B and C. 

Global burden and gaps in response

• Updated WHO estimates indicate that 287 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B or C infection in 2024.

• That year, 0.9 million people were newly infected with hepatitis B. 

• The WHO African Region accounted for 68 per cent of new hepatitis B infections, yet only 17 per cent of newborns in the region received the hepatitis B birth-dose vaccination.

• A further 0.9 million hepatitis C infections were recorded in 2024. 

• People who inject drugs accounted for 44 per cent of new infections, highlighting the urgent need for stronger harm reduction services and safe injection practices.

• Of the 240 million people with chronic hepatitis B in 2024, fewer than 5 per cent were receiving treatment. 

• Only 20 per cent of people with hepatitis C have been treated since 2015, when a new 12-week treatment with a cure rate of about 95 per cent became available.

• As a result of limited access to prevention and care, in 2024 an estimated 1.1 million people died from hepatitis B and 240,000 from hepatitis C. 

• Liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma were the main causes of hepatitis related deaths. 

• A large share of hepatitis B-related deaths occurred in the African and Western Pacific Regions.

• Ten countries — Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, the Philippines, South Africa and Vietnam — accounted for 69 per cent of hepatitis B related deaths worldwide in 2024. 

• Hepatitis C-related deaths are more geographically dispersed. 

• In 2024, ten countries accounted for 58 per cent of the global total: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Russia, South Africa, the United States of America and Vietnam.

Progress in tackling hepatitis

• Despite these challenges, progress in countries such as Egypt, Georgia, Rwanda, and the United Kingdom demonstrates that eliminating hepatitis as a public health problem is achievable with sustained commitment and investment.

Highly effective tools are already available:

i) Hepatitis B vaccine protects more than 95 per cent of vaccinated people against both acute and chronic infections.

ii) Long-term antiviral treatment for hepatitis B can help effectively manage chronic infection and prevent severe liver disease.

iii) Hepatitis C short-course curative therapy lasting 8-12 weeks can cure more than 95 per cent of infections.