Free hepatitis C home testing service
The HSE is urging people who might be at risk of having hepatitis C to order a free, confidential hepatitis C home test ahead of World Hepatitis Day on Sunday, July 28. Approximately 3,500 - 5,000 people in Ireland are unknowingly living with hepatitis C.
Hepatitis C is a virus that damages the liver and can lead to serious and potentially life-threatening damage to the liver if not treated. Many people with the virus don’t show symptoms and don’t know they are infected.
Professor Aiden McCormick, Clinical Lead for the HSE National Hepatitis C Treatment Programme, says: "We are encouraging people to use our free and confidential hepatitis C home test. The test detects hepatitis C in people with no symptoms, who may be at risk of infection from this life-threatening but curable disease. To date the National Hepatitis C Treatment Programme has treated over 7,000 people with a 95% cure rate and is on track to meet the elimination targets set out by the World Health Organisation.”
Marie O’Grady, HSE Hepatitis C Programme Lead, stressed the importance of home testing: “To meet the WHO's goal and protect people’s health, more people need to be tested. Many in Ireland might have hepatitis C without knowing it. Sharing personal items, getting tattoos abroad, unprotected sex, and drug use are some ways the virus can spread.”
The free, confidential home test is available for anyone 18 and older. It involves taking a few drops of blood from your finger and sending it in a prepaid envelope for lab analysis. If the test is positive, the treatment is provided for free from the HSE with over 95% of people cured in as little as 8-12 weeks.
HOW TO ORDER TEST
The confidential hepatitis C test is free to order online from www.hse.ie/hepc