Most of us pay attention to our health when something feels wrong.
A headache sends us looking for pain relief. A persistent cough makes us consider seeing a doctor. A fever usually tells us it’s time to slow down.
But not every health condition comes with an early warning.
Some develop quietly, causing damage long before they become noticeable. Viral hepatitis is one of them.
That’s one of the reasons World Hepatitis Day, observed every year on July 28, exists. It’s an opportunity to raise awareness about a disease that affects millions of people worldwide, many of whom don’t know they have it.
What Is Hepatitis?
Hepatitis simply means inflammation of the liver. While it can have different causes, including alcohol misuse, certain medications, and autoimmune diseases, it is most commonly associated with viral infections.
There are five main types of viral hepatitis: A, B, C, D and E. They don’t all spread the same way, and they don’t all have the same long-term effects.
Hepatitis A and E are usually spread through contaminated food or water and often resolve without causing long-term liver damage.
Hepatitis B and C are different. They can become chronic infections, meaning they stay in the body for years. If left untreated, they can lead to serious complications such as liver cirrhosis, liver failure, or liver cancer.
Why Many People Don’t Know They Have It
One of the biggest challenges with hepatitis is that it often causes few or no symptoms in its early stages.
A person may feel perfectly healthy while the virus is quietly damaging the liver.
In fact, the World Health Organization estimates that nearly 220 million people living with hepatitis B and about 36 million people living with hepatitis C around the world have not been diagnosed.
That means millions of people are carrying the infection without knowing it.
By the time symptoms such as persistent fatigue, yellowing of the eyes or skin, abdominal swelling, or unexplained weight loss appear, significant liver damage may already have occurred.
This is why hepatitis is often described as a “silent” disease.
Why It Matters
It’s easy to assume hepatitis is uncommon or only affects certain groups of people, but the numbers tell a different story.
According to the World Health Organization, around 304 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B or C in 2022. Together, these infections caused 1.3 million deaths in the same year, mostly from liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. That’s about 3,500 deaths every day.
The encouraging news is that many of these deaths can be prevented through vaccination, early testing, timely treatment, and safer health practices.
Can Hepatitis Be Prevented?
In many cases, yes.
The hepatitis B vaccine is highly effective and is part of routine childhood immunisation in many countries. Safe medical practices, avoiding the sharing of needles or sharp objects, and ensuring blood products are properly screened also help reduce the risk of infection.
For hepatitis C, there is currently no vaccine, but effective treatments are available that can cure most people who receive them early.
When Should You Consider Getting Tested?
Many people assume testing is only necessary if they feel unwell.
With hepatitis, that’s not always the case.
You may want to speak with a healthcare professional about testing if you:
- have never been screened for hepatitis B or C
- have had exposure to unscreened blood or shared sharp objects
- work in a setting where you may come into contact with blood
- have been advised by a healthcare provider to get tested
- simply want to know your status as part of a routine health check
We often say that “prevention is better than cure” and Hepatitis is one of the clearest examples of why that saying still matters.
Your liver performs more than 500 essential functions every day, from filtering toxins and processing nutrients to storing energy and helping your body fight infections. Most of the time, it does all of this without asking for your attention.
Perhaps the least we can do is return the favour.
This World Hepatitis Day, take a few minutes to learn about hepatitis, encourage someone you care about to do the same, and don’t let “I feel fine” be the only measure of your health.
Sometimes, the conditions that say the least deserve the most attention.
