Hep B in the news

[zellyf]

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=
news/assignment_7&id=6138445

[stevenNYer]

We can hope right ;)

[zellyf]

I was going to ask if you knew what the little pill was.  

I think the proper situation would be to encourage people to get tested and encourage doctors to be better educated.  In a perfect world, right?

[stevenNYer]

"I think the primary drive here is to get people to get tested."

Yes, I agree.  That is certainly the important first step.

I guess it's frustrating to see how far HepB education has to go.  It's a double edge sword.  They make it sound simple so people are more willing to get tested.  But the simplicity also allows people to become complacent or to ask for that little treatment pill they show in the news report without question, which we know all doctors are so well educated on treatment (insert sarcasm here).  By the way, that treatment pill they show is Adefovir.

Oh yeah, I also wrote Fiona Ma to show my support for her advocacy work.  Will let you guys know if I get a reply.

[zellyf]

I think the primary drive here is to get people to get tested.  If you start talking about how complex the treatment options are they are going to avoid testing.  We need to focus on getting patients tested and then I'd love to see counseling programs after diagnosis like there are for HIV patients.  With educated patient advocates.

Hmmm....

[stevenNYer]

Always good to get press on HepB.  However, they should indicate that HepB is a complex disease.  The explanation is too simple which could lead to people walking out of their doctors office with one of the earlier antivirals.  They should encourage people to learn about the disease before treating.

On that note.  I used the "contact us" link to write a comment to the reporter, Alan Wang.  I hope he gets it.  Will let you know if I get a reply.

[cajim]

Ma, what a courageous lady!

Many thanks for this posting.