Issue
Number 497
December 9, 2004
CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE
- Unprotected People #68-70: Liver cancer deaths following
failure to test for HBV and to interpret test results accurately
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December 9, 2004
UNPROTECTED PEOPLE #68-70: LIVER CANCER DEATHS FOLLOWING FAILURE TO TEST FOR
HBV AND TO INTERPRET TEST RESULTS ACCURATELY
The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) publishes articles about people who
have suffered or died from vaccine-preventable diseases and periodically
devotes an IAC EXPRESS issue to such articles. In this issue, we present
three Unprotected People reports about four people who died from liver
cancer related to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Three were immigrants
from countries that have high or intermediate rates of HBV infection; one
was a U.S.-born child of an immigrant from a country with high HBV
endemicity.
Their relatives--mother, sister, and daughter--wrote the accounts reprinted
below. Their hope, and ours, is that the experience of the son, brothers,
and mother chronicled here will make a powerful case for health
professionals to take steps to protect their immigrant patients and
susceptible family members from HBV infection and its complications,
including liver cancer. The steps include testing and vaccinating those at
risk for HBV infection and identifying and treating those chronically
infected with HBV.
Below is a brief summary of each account, followed by a URL that will take
you to the complete Unprotected People report:
"Unprotected People #68: One Family's Story: Living with Hepatitis B"
underscores the serious consequences misinterpreted HBV test results had for
a family with three children adopted from Korea. To read it, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/stories/story68.htm
"Unprotected People #69: Testimony before the President's Advisory Committee
on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders" recounts a young woman's loss of
her mother and brother to undetected HBV infection and HBV-related liver
cancer. To read it, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/stories/story69.htm
"Unprotected People #70: We called him 'A-Man'" tells of the death of a
20-year-old college student and of his and his siblings' determination to
educate the public about HBV infection. To read it, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/stories/story70.htm
To read more IAC Unprotected People Reports, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/stories
DISCLAIMER: The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) publishes
Unprotected People Reports for the purpose of making them available
for our readers' review. We have not verified the content of these
reports, for which the authors are solely responsible.
DO YOU KNOW OF PUBLISHED ARTICLES ABOUT UNPROTECTED PEOPLE? Please
let us know if you find articles or case reports about people who
have suffered or died from vaccine-preventable diseases that have
appeared in the general or scientific media. Send information about
articles or case reports to IAC EXPRESS by email to
admin@immunize.org or by fax to (651) 647-9131. |
