Wu Jieping Medical Foundation - HCV Grant winner

StephenW

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/02/prweb5060224.htm
Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation Awards Nearly $1Million to Improve HBV and HCV Awareness, Prevention and Care in Chinaand India               The Bristol-MyersSquibb Foundation has awarded four new grants to help improveawareness, prevention and care of hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C(HCV) in China and India.                                                                     

Bangkok (PRWEB) February 18, 2011

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation has awarded four new grants to helpimprove awareness, prevention and care of hepatitis B (HBV) andhepatitis C (HCV) in China and India. The grants total nearly $1million USD and bring the Foundation’s commitment to reducinghepatitis-related health disparities in Asia to $8 million USD over thepast three years. The grant recipients were announced at the AsianPacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) 2011 Conferencein Bangkok, Thailand, where leaders in the hepatology field gathered topromote scientific advancement and education in the Asia Pacificregion. (1)
The mission of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation is to help reducehealth disparities in communities where the need is greatest. China andIndia together have an estimated 123 million people chronicallyinfected with HBV and 59 million people chronically infected with HCV,accounting for almost 50 percent of all HBV and HCV infectionsworldwide. (2,3)
The Foundation’s work related to hepatitis in Asia falls under theDelivering Hope™: Awareness, Prevention and Care umbrella programme. Todate, Delivering Hope has supported 32 programme grants across Asia,specifically 14 grants in mainland China, three in Taiwan, 12 in Indiaand three in Japan.
“Our four new grant recipients reflect the best use of resourcesto reduce hepatitis B- and C- related disparities in China and India.They mobilise, serve and strengthen their local communities’ healthcare armament in the fight against these diseases,” said John Damonti,president, Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation.
“We look forward to improved hepatitis awareness, prevention andcare in these countries’ communities, as well as to applying our keylearnings from these programmes in other countries.”
In keeping with the Foundation’s commitment to sharing lessonslearned, funding recipients will prepare a comprehensive final reportat the completion of their projects. These reports will be shared withthe HBV and HCV community to enhance the body of knowledge on hepatitisprevention, care, and support.
Chinese Grant Recipient Aims to Inform HCV Public Policy
Approximately 40 million people are infected with HCV in China,leading the Chinese government to declare it an urgent public healthissue. (4) HCV prevalence is estimated to continue to grow, andassociated comorbidities such as liver disease, cirrhosis and cancer,are a growing health concern. (5)
The Chinese grant winner, the Wu Jieping Medical Foundation, willconduct an operational study of the socio-economic burden of HCVpatients and their families in China. The study will aim to recommendpolicies that will improve prevention and access to care. The grantwill also fund a comprehensive intervention programme for a cohort ofHCV patients.
India Grants Provide Hepatitis Education, Vaccination for Multiple Audiences
India is one the fastest growing economies, yet approximately 25-30percent of the population lives below the poverty line. More than 30million people in India are infected with HBV (6) and 19 million areinfected with HCV. (7)
The Foundation has awarded three grants to India-basedorganizations. United Way Mumbai will conduct an extensive HBV and HCVawareness campaign targeted at college students and high-risk groups.The campaign will promote HBV vaccination, HBV and HCV diagnosis andearly referral to care. The Hepatitis Foundation of Tripura inconjunction with the government of the state of Tripura will instituteat-birth HBV vaccinations and train health care professionals andcommunity groups on disease education for mothers and their families.The Health Oriented Programmes and Education (HOPE) Initiative is apublic-private sector partnership that will provide HBV education forschool children in Uttar Pradesh, in the hope of spreading the wordamong their families and local communities. The Uttar Pradesh Stategovernment has endorsed the programme and will be an active partner indeveloping it across India’s most populous state.
About Chronic Hepatitis B
Chronic hepatitis B is a serious global health issue and istransmitted by person-to-person contact with infected blood or bodilyfluids. Worldwide, more than 2 billion people have been in contact withthe hepatitis B virus and approximately 350 million people arechronically infected, (8) resulting in about one million deathsannually from liver cancer, cirrhosis or liver failure. (9)
About Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is a virus that infects the liver and is transmittedthrough direct contact with blood. An estimated 170 million peopleworldwide are infected with hepatitis C. (10) One to five percent ofpeople with chronic infection will develop liver cancer. Although thereis no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C, it is a curable disease. (11)
About Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation and Delivering Hope
The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation is an independent charitableorganisation whose mission is to reduce health disparities and improvehealth outcomes around the world for patients disproportionatelyaffected by serious disease. The Foundation accomplishes this bystrengthening community-based health care worker capacity, integratingmedical care and community-based supportive services, and mobilisingcommunities in the fight against disease.
Since 2002, the Foundation has supported efforts in Asia, initiallyfocusing on preventing mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B andpromoting hepatitis B immunisation in China. In 2006, the Foundationexpanded those efforts to provide broader support for hepatitis B and Cawareness, prevention and education, including the adoption ofhepatitis B and C interventions and education in public healthprogrammes.
Today, the Foundation’s priority hepatitis B and C programmesencompass capacity building for health care professionals and layhealth workers, disease education and awareness, and sharing of bestpractices in the prevention and management of hepatitis B and C toinform public health policy.
Beyond hepatitis, the Foundation also focuses on HIV/AIDS inAfrica through its SECURE THE FUTUREÒ programme; cancer in Central andEastern Europe through its Bridging Cancer Care programme; and diabetesand mental-health in the United States through its Together On Diabetesand Mental Health and Well-Being programmes. For more information, viewthe Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation’s Web site at: http://www.bms.com/foundation/pages/home.aspx
Media Contact:
Annie Simond, +33 1 58 83 65 66, annie(dot)simond(at)bms(dot)com
Sonia Choi, +1 609 252 51 32, sonia(dot)choi(at)bms(dot)com
1. APASL 2011 Bangkok Conference Web site, About section. Available at: http://www.kenes.com/apasl2011/. Accessed 20 January, 2011
2. WHO. Available at: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/hepatitis/en/.
3. Ferlay et al. Globocan 2002, Cancer incidence, mortality and prevalence worldwide, IARC Press, Lyon 2004
4. China Foundation for Hepatitis Prevention and Control. Available at: http://www.cfhpc.org/. Accessed 19 January 2011
5. BMS Market Research: WHA Policy Report Final pdf
6. Singh SP. Hepatitis B Eradication Day: It’s never too late!!. Hep B Annual 2006; 3:11-13
7. World Health Organisation. Department of Veteran Affairs; Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Datamonitor 2006.
8. World Health Organisation. Fact sheet No. 204. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs204/en/. Accessed 20 January, 2011
9. Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation. Available at: http://www.bms.com/foundation/pages/home.aspx. Accessed 20 January, 2011
10. World Health Organization. Hepatitis C. Available at http://www.who.int/csr/disease/hepatitis/whocdscsrlyo2003/en/index1.html. Accessed 19 January 2011
11. World Health Organisation. Fact sheet No164. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs164/en/. Accessed 20 January, 2011
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