Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, noted: "Every 30 seconds, someone dies from severe liver disease or liver cancer caused by hepatitis. But we have the tools to curb it."
Hepatitis A, B, C, D and E are major causes of acute liver infections. Among them, hepatitis B, C and D can lead to chronic infections, significantly increasing the risk of cirrhosis, liver failure or liver cancer. However, most people with hepatitis are unaware of their infection. Globally, over 300 million people live with hepatitis B, C or D each year, causing more than 1.3 million deaths, mainly from cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Hepatitis D now classified as carcinogenic
Recently, like hepatitis B and C, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified hepatitis D as carcinogenic to humans. Hepatitis D only affects people with hepatitis B. Those co-infected with hepatitis D face a 2-6 times higher risk of liver cancer compared to those infected with hepatitis B alone. This reclassification is a key step in global efforts to raise awareness, improve screening and expand access to new treatments for hepatitis D.
Dr Meg Doherty, incoming Director of WHO's Department of Health Sciences, said: "WHO released guidelines for hepatitis B and D testing and diagnosis in 2024, and is closely monitoring clinical results of innovative hepatitis D therapies."
Oral medications can cure hepatitis C in 2-3 months, and hepatitis B can be effectively suppressed with lifelong treatment. Treatment options for hepatitis D are still evolving. Only by taking urgent action to scale up hepatitis services – including vaccination, testing, harm reduction and treatment – and integrating them into national health systems can we fully reduce deaths from cirrhosis and cancer.
Latest data and progress
Encouragingly, most low- and middle-income countries have developed hepatitis strategic plans, with ongoing progress in national responses:
In 2025, the number of countries with a national hepatitis action plan rose from 59 to 123;
129 countries (up from 106 in 2024) adopted policies for hepatitis B testing in pregnant women;
147 countries (up from 138 in 2022) introduced hepatitis B birth-dose vaccination.
However, as outlined in the 2024 Global Hepatitis Report, major gaps remain in service coverage and outcomes:
Testing and treatment coverage is still extremely low: by 2022, only 13% of people with hepatitis B and 36% with hepatitis C were diagnosed;
Treatment rates are even lower: 3% for hepatitis B and 20% for hepatitis C – far below the 2025 targets of 60% diagnosis and 50% treatment;
Integration of hepatitis services is uneven: 80 countries integrate hepatitis into primary health care; 128 into HIV programmes; but only 27 integrate hepatitis C services into harm reduction centres.
The next challenge is scaling up prevention, testing and treatment. Achieving WHO's 2030 targets could save 2.8 million lives and prevent 9.8 million new infections. With declining donor funding, countries must prioritize domestic investment, integrated services, better data, affordable medicines and stigma elimination.
