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| Interested in saving lives? Stanford Students: Join the Fight Against Hepatitis B! Apply for the 2008-2009 Paid Internship at the Asian Liver Center. - Plan major grassroots health outreach events - Raise awareness about a global health issue - Make a difference! Download the 2008-2009 Application. Application deadline: September 30, 2008. Paid web intern position also available! |
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new hepatitis B guidelines on Thursday, September 18, 2008 that recommend testing all people in the United States who were born in Asia and Africa. View CDC Recommendations Press Release. View SF Chronicle article. "Our culture is not to talk about disease," State Assemblywoman Fiona Ma said. "People should not keep this a secret. I was walking around for 20 years not knowing what to do about my own health. I have a 1 in 4 probability of developing liver cancer. I'm hopeful that the disease won't affect me in my lifetime." |
The Asian Liver Center and the Global Health Benefits Institute work together to build a partnership with educational and academic institutions and corporate America to address hepatitis B. Learn about hepatitis B and view our joint publications on the NBGH website. View The Business Response to Hepatitis B: An Action Guide for Managers (PDF). |
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Upcoming Events |
Site Updates |
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The first annual B a Hero! Gala: an evening of food and entertainment to benefit the "B a Hero!" and the SF Hep B Free Campaigns was held on Thursday, September 18, 2008 at the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco. The Gala was hosted by the Saint Francis Memorial Hospital and St. Mary's Medical Center. For more information on this event, please visit the San Francisco Hep B Free website.
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"Hep B Free"Screenings and Vaccinations every first and third Saturday of the month at AACI (10 AM-1PM, 2400 Moorpark Avenue, San Jose). $30 for Screening and Vaccination. Next Screenings on September 20th, October 4th and October 18! More information here.
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Congratulations to the 2008 YLC participants! The 6th Annual Youth Leadership Conference was held on August 14th - 17th at Stanford University. This 4 day conference allowed high school students to explore and learn about community health outreach from doctors, policy makers and public health activists. Public video PSAs from the team challenge can now be viewed online here. | The 3rd Annual LIVERight 5k Run/Walk took place on May 10, 2008. It had over 600 registered runners and raised over $100,000 to fight hepatitis B and liver cancer. Pictures are now available for viewing here and the race results are available for viewing here. Thanks from the Asian Liver Center to everyone who participated! Save the Date: The 4th Annual LIVERight 5k Run/Walk will be held on Saturday, May 2, 2009. |
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Jade Ribbon Campaign | |||||||||
The greatest health disparity between Asian Americans and white Americans is the prevalence of chronic hepatitis B infection and the high incidence of liver cancer, 80% of which is caused by chronic hepatitis B infection. Approximately 1 in 10 Asian and Pacific Islander (API) Americans have chronic hepatitis B infection compared with 1 in 1,000 of white Americans. Liver cancer rates are 9 times higher in Vietnamese Americans, 4 times higher in Korean Americans, and 4 times higher in Chinese Americans than white Americans. In May 2001, the Asian Liver Center launched the Jade Ribbon Campaign in the San Francisco Bay Area to spread awareness about hepatitis B and liver cancer in the Asian community. Since then, the Jade Ribbon Campaign has spread across the country and the world, reaching Asian communities in San Diego, Orange County, Los Angeles, Arizona, New York, Hawaii, as well as China and the Philippines, uniting people from all walks of life in the fight against hepatitis B and liver cancer. Partners of the Jade Ribbon Campaign include over 400 groups of community organizations and federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Hepatitis B Task Force for Immunization, and the Health Resources and Services Administration and its affiliated agencies in the US Department of Health and Human Services. The objective of the campaign is to increase awareness and provide ethnic-sensitive health information to the API community and health professionals in an effort to reduce this major health disparity and improve API health. This multimedia campaign includes television public service announcements, radio shows, bus ads, lectures in the community, and more. Considered to be the essence of heaven and earth, Jade is believed in many Asian cultures to bring good luck and longevity while deflecting negativity. Folded like the Chinese character meaning "person" or "people," the Jade Ribbon symbolizes the united voices of those fighting hepatitis B and liver cancer worldwide.
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Outreach & EDUCATION |
ADVOCACY |
Research |
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The key to winning the fight against hepatitis B and liver cancer is prevention, and prevention begins with outreach & education. Since its founding in 1996, the Asian Liver Center has been dedicated to serving the Asian community through a variety of outreach and education programs. A HBV vaccine is readily available, offering full protection from hepatitis B, but many API are not vaccinated simply because they are not aware of the problem and its prevalence in their community. The Asian Liver Center regularly participates in community events throughout the Bay Area, providing screenings and low-cost vaccinations, hosting educational booths and games, speaking to health care providers and developing workshops to spread awareness about hepatitis B and liver cancer. The outreach section of our site gives details about our screenings, conferences, community events, advocacy efforts, partnerships, ongoing projects, and contests. The education section of our site includes detailed information about hepatitis B, liver cancer, vaccination and blood tests as well as patient testimonials and resources for health care providers. |
In order to successfully eradicate hepatitis B, we must unite together and speak out against this silent killer. The ALC works on the local, statewide, national and international levels to promote hepatitis B and liver cancer awareness and to support the expansion of the Jade Ribbon Campaign. In California, the Asian Liver Center is working with Assemblywoman Fiona Ma to pass Assembly Bill 158, which will provide care for all uninsured and under-insured people who are chronically infected with hepatitis B, with no raise in taxes. Nationally, the Asian Liver Center worked with Congressman Mike Honda co-sponsored a bill early in 2006 to designate the first National Hepatitis B Awareness Week in May 2006. In April 2004, the Jade Ribbon Campaign was launched by the ALC in China in partnership with the China Foundation for Hepatitis Prevention and Control at the China National Hepatitis Conference. The Asian Liver Center continues to advocate for laws that prevent hepatitis B discrimination, strategies to provide access to affordable screenings, vaccinations and treatment, and partnerships to unite together against HBV and liver cancer. |
The Asian Liver Center conducts translational research by which our scientific research is translated into practical applications to improve human health. Research in liver cancer has generally received low priority for federal funding in this country, contributing to the current lack of effective treatment for chronically infected individuals. We are committed to finding novel approaches to increase the efficacy of diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment through the development of a comprehensive liver cancer research program with an emphasis on liver cancer genomics, biomarkers, molecular targets, and investigational anti-tumor agents. The ALC is currently working on a perinatal hepatitis B prevention initiative to design and implement strategies to prevent mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B in Alameda and Santa Clara counties, where the combined population of about 3.2 million experiences some of the highest rates of chronic HBV and liver cancer in the US. We are dedicated to our clinical research and community research programs to ensure patients receive the most effective treatment and that our outreach efforts make the largest possible impact for a healthier community. Through our multi-faceted translational research, we hope to change national policies and the attitudes of healthcare providers towards HBV and liver cancer prevention through sound, evidence-based information from vigorous lab, clinical and community-based research studies. |
| Last Updated: September 19, 2008 | ||