Egypt has achieved a remarkable feat in the fight against hepatitis C, a viral infection that affects the liver and can cause serious complications. The country, which once had the world’s highest burden of the disease, has screened its entire population, negotiated a deal for cheap drugs and cured almost everyone with the virus. It is now on track to be the first country to eliminate hepatitis C, according to the World Health Organization.
But Egypt is not stopping there. It is also using its success as a platform for “health diplomacy”, pledging to donate drugs and share expertise with other African countries that are struggling with the disease. Egypt aims to treat a million African patients by 2025, starting with Ghana, where it has already donated enough drugs to treat 46,000 people.
Hepatitis C is a global health challenge, affecting about 58 million people worldwide, mostly in low- and middle-income countries. The virus is transmitted by blood, often through unsafe injections or medical procedures. It can cause chronic infection, leading to liver damage, cirrhosis and cancer. About 300,000 people die each year from hepatitis C-related complications.
The disease has been largely neglected by the international community, unlike HIV and malaria, which have received more funding and attention. Many countries do not have public health plans or testing programs for hepatitis C, and most people do not know they have it. Treatment is also expensive and inaccessible for many, especially in Africa, where only a few wealthy people can afford it.
But in 2013, a breakthrough came when a new drug, called sofosbuvir, was introduced by Gilead Sciences Inc. It was the first cure for a viral infection in the history of medicine, with a success rate of over 90 per cent and few side effects. However, the drug was priced at $1,000 per pill in the United States, making it unaffordable for most people in developing countries.
Egypt, which had about nine million people infected with hepatitis C at the time, managed to negotiate a deal with Gilead to buy the drug for $10 per pill. It then arranged for local and Indian drug companies to make generic versions of the drug for even less, in exchange for a royalty. Egypt also launched a massive screening campaign, testing more than 100 million people for the virus, and offered free treatment to anyone who needed it. Since then, Egypt has treated more than four million people and reduced its hepatitis C prevalence to just 0.4 per cent.
Egypt’s health minister, Khaled Ghaffar, said the country saw an opportunity to extend its expertise beyond its borders and contribute to global health efforts. He said Egypt’s health diplomacy would benefit humanity and enhance its standing in the global community.
One of the beneficiaries of Egypt’s generosity is Ghana, which has a high prevalence of hepatitis C, especially in the north, where poverty and lack of health services are more acute. Ghana has received a donation of drugs from Egypt and is working to scale up its testing and treatment program, with the help of the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination, a network of experts and organizations.
One of the patients who received free treatment in Ghana is Sulemana Musah, a schoolteacher in Accra, who had been living with hepatitis C for seven years. He had spent almost all his money on tests and medicines, but none of them worked. He had given up his dreams of starting a business, building a house and getting married. He was waiting for God to do his wonders, he said.
But in March, his doctor told him he could have treatment for free, thanks to the drugs from Egypt. He took the pills for 12 weeks and in October, a blood test showed he was cured. He said he felt like he had a new life, free to plan his future.
Egypt is also working to set up similar hepatitis C programs in other African countries, such as Chad and Sudan. It hopes to inspire other countries to follow its example and join the global effort to eliminate the disease.
Dr. John W. Ward, the director of the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination, said Egypt’s accomplishment was one of the greatest in public health history. He said hepatitis C could be wiped out because it was feasible, with effective and affordable drugs available. He urged countries to realize the potential and act on it.
“We should be on a warpath to eliminate hepatitis C,” he said.
Source: The New York Times
