Australian rock legend Russell Morris is leading a national campaign aimed at stemming the tide of liver disease caused by the country’s leading viral cause of death, hepatitis C.
Morris’s 1969 international hit, “The Real Thing”, has been chosen as the theme for the campaign which also hopes to remove the significant social stigma associated with the disease.
Drawing on the lyrics of the rock classic, Morris said that it was now time to “get real about hepatitis C and take action”. Referring to the social stigma, he said that it was time to “see the real person and not just the disease”.
“Too many Australians are living with the virus, not enough seek treatment and far too many face the prospect of liver failure or cancer,” Morris said.
The See the Real Thing campaign, featuring a short video competition, is being supported by Hepatitis Australia and a pharmaceutical company and is timed to coincide with the addition of new antiviral medications to the PBS. The listing is expected to benefit those Australians with the most common and difficult to treat strain of the hepatitis C virus known as genotype-1.
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“Hepatitis C can be cured in the majority of those treated, but fewer than two per cent of people with the infection currently receive treatment each year. This treatment rate is unacceptably low,” said Hepatitis Australia CEO Helen Tyrrell.
“We have a lot to do to improve treatment rates in Australia. The availability of new antivirals, alongside campaigns such as this one, should be a step in the right direction,” she said.
“Liver disease caused by hepatitis C can progress but remain asymptomatic for 30 or 40 years. This means we are only now seeing the full impact of an epidemic which began to spread rapidly back when Russell Morris was topping the charts with “The Real Thing”,” said Professor Andrew Lloyd of the University of New South Wales.
More than 226,000 Australians now live with hepatitis C. Transmitted through blood-to-blood contact, an estimated 80 per cent of cases have been contracted through unsafe injecting drug use. Hepatitis C can also be contracted through un-sterile tattooing and body piercing practices.
“Not many people admit to having hepatitis C, but many of us know of people who have lost their lives to liver disease,” said Morris. “It’s not pretty.”
Morris said, “I appeal to people living with hepatitis C not to leave it until it is too late.” He added, “the real thing and the right thing for anyone concerned about hepatitis C is to see a doctor and ask for a referral to a specialist or to seek information on life without the virus.”
Ms Tyrrell said she hoped the See The Real Thing campaign would inspire film makers to create ways of starting conversations not just about the basic facts around hepatitis C, but also around the impact of stigma on people living with hepatitis C. She said we want everyone to get behind people living with hepatitis C and show greater understanding and provide support particularly when they are contemplating or undergoing treatment.
The campaign sponsor is offering a $10,000 cash prize for a community service announcement that best promotes positive action in the fight against hepatitis C. The short video must feature “The Real Thing”, performed by Russell Morris, written by rock icon Johnny Young and produced by rock journalist and presenter Molly Meldrum.
Russell Morris, Helen Tyrrell, Jen Anderson (musician and Hepatitis Australia Board Member) and Tom Chadwick (TV presenter – Sports News) will form the judging panel that will select the six competition finalists who will be featured on the See the Real Thing website. The winner will be determined by a public online vote.
“People living with the virus or those who are concerned about hepatitis C really are encouraged to reconnect with their doctor and ask for a referral to a specialist to learn about new treatment options and start to prepare for a cure,” Professor Lloyd.
