Hepatitis B Foundation Kicks Off 20th Anniversary Year with New International Ca

StephenW

Hepatitis B Foundation Kicks Off 20th Anniversary Year with New International Campaign

(Multi-year Comprehensive Hepatitis BOutreach and Education Campaign in China Launched with Support of$400,000 Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation Grant)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRLog (Press Release) – Feb 18, 2011 – The Hepatitis B Foundation, celebrating its 20thanniversary as the global authority dedicated to eliminating hepatitisB worldwide, is launching its Gateway to Care public health campaign inHaimen City, China. This new international program is made possible bya $400,000 educational grant from the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation.

The Foundation’s Gateway to Care program in China is a multi-year,citywide initiative that will raise public awareness about hepatitis Bamong its one million residents, educate hundreds of health careproviders to improve screening and management of hepatitis B, andprovide information and support to those living with this serious liverdisease. The primary goal of the campaign is to create a model outreachand education program in Haimen City that can be readily adapted andduplicated in other cities to help reduce the enormous burden ofhepatitis B in China.
   
Hepatitis B is the world’s most serious, common liver infectionthat chronically infects 400 million people worldwide. More than 100million of those chronically infected live in China. Hepatitis Bresults in one million deaths each year and is also the leading causeof liver cancer, making it the 10th leading cause of death worldwide.In China alone, almost 500,000 people die each year from hepatitisB-related complications such as cirrhosis and liver cancer.

The Foundation’s ambitious Gateway to Care campaign was developedto address the growing severity of hepatitis B and liver cancer amongAsian populations in both the U.S. and China. The Foundation selectedtwo demonstration sites – Philadelphia and Haimen City – where it has atrack of success and credibility with the city’s leadership and healthorganizations to launch its campaign. Philadelphia has the 12th largestAsian population of any U.S. city, with 219,000 Asian residents, andwas a natural place to begin because it is in the backyard of theFoundation. In 2008, the Foundation initiated its national Gateway toCare program in Philadelphia to raise awareness and provide freeeducation, screening and linkage to care by partnering with manycommunity-based organizations.

With the support Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation’s grant, theHepatitis B Foundation is now able to expand its Gateway to Carecampaign in Haimen City, China, which is located in Jiangsu Province,approximately 60 miles northwest of Shanghai. Haimen City was selectedbecause it has one of the highest rates of chronic hepatitis Binfections and liver cancer in all of China and the Foundation has alongstanding relationship with the city. Since the early 1990s, morethan 13,000 individuals identified as having chronic hepatitis B, froman original cohort of 90,000 who were initially screened, have beenregularly monitored by a team led by public health scientists who arenow part of the Foundation. More than 1,200 of these infectedindividuals have since died from liver cancer. Today, the Foundation’snew campaign will directly benefit patients and families through itscomprehensive education and outreach efforts. With one of every fourchronically infected individuals at high-risk for premature death fromliver failure and liver cancer, a successful public health model inChina will help save millions of lives.

The Foundation’s Gateway to Care initiative in Haimen City will beled by Gang Chen, MD, PhD, Director of China Programs, who was born inthe city and received his training from Shanghai Medical School (nowFudan University). Additional key Foundation members who will beinvolved in the campaign include: Baruch Blumberg, MD, PhD, Nobellaureate and Foundation Distinguished Scholar; W. Thomas London, MD,Board Member and Senior Medical Advisor; Joan M. Block, RN, BSN,Executive Director; and Chari Cohen, MPH, Associate Director, PublicHealth Research.

About the Hepatitis B Foundation: The Hepatitis B Foundation,celebrating its 20th anniversary as the global authority dedicated toeliminating hepatitis B,  is the only national nonprofit organizationsolely dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of lifefor those affected with hepatitis B worldwide through research,education and patient advocacy. It is headquartered in the PennsylvaniaBiotechnology Center, which it created to accelerate its researchmission. To learn more, visit www.hepb.org or call (215) 489-4900.

About the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation: The mission of theBristol-Myers Squibb Foundation is to help reduce health disparities bystrengthening community-based health care worker capacity, integratingmedical care and community-based supportive services, and mobilizingcommunities in the fight against disease. To learn more, visitwww.bms.com/foundation.