The hep C revolution breaking out inside Australia’s prisons
After 20 years of work, Professor Andrew Lloyd says the virus is being eliminated
It is estimated that up to 10,000 inmates in the Australian prison system have hepatitis C — roughly 20% of the prison population.
Prisons are often dubbed reservoirs of disease, the mechanism for bringing the virus into communities.
But with the emergence of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) five years ago, the hope is that lives will be transformed and the virus eventually eliminated.
Here, infectious diseases physician Professor Andrew Lloyd, who has spent the past 20 years caring for inmates, explains that these hopes are now being realised.
