DUBAI // New medication to help limit the spread of hepatitis C has been approved for use in the UAE and is to be used by doctors as part of a nationwide screening programme to detect the virus.
Official figures suggest that up to two per cent of the population has hepatitis C, a blood virus that can cause liver cirrhosis or cancer if untreated.
Doctors predict that number could be higher, with some people unaware they are carriers because up to 80 per cent of those show no visible symptoms.
About 350,000 to 500,000 people worldwide die from hepatitis C-related liver diseases each year.
Patients will be screened for the virus through a simple blood test.
The use of breakthrough drug Viekirax combined with Exviera has been approved by the Ministry of Health. Patients in the UAE will be among the first in the Gulf to benefit.
Dr Mohamed Abdel Qader, head of gastroenterology at Mafraq Hospital, Abu Dhabi, said: “We are planning to screen all UAE nationals to find the true prevalence of hepatitis.
“We will have more of an idea of how this drug is needed. We can then notify the people who may not be aware they have the virus.”
Viekirax and Exviera have proved to have less severe side effects than other medications and be more effective, with a cure rate of between 95 to 100 per cent. Patients are also cured within half the time of current treatments.
Latest MoH figures suggest up to 20,000 Emiratis may carry the hepatitis C virus, and as many as 18,000 expatriates are also thought to be infected.
The Emirates Red Crescent charity is hosting screening at its hepatology clinic in Sharjah, which is a free service for expats.
Dr Moustafa Sayed Abdel Aziz, a volunteer at the clinic, said: “The duration of treatment will no longer be a year, but much less, maybe just three months.
“Before I could treat just 700 patients a year; with this new treatment I will be able to treat more than 1,000.”
nwebster@thenational.ae
