“My grandmother died of liver cancer, so that diagnosis started with shock and fear. Inside me I thought I was dying,” said Lien Tran reflecting on her diagnosis of hepatitis B as a young student.
Co-founder Hepatitis B Voices Australia, Lien
Liver cancer is the fastest rising cause of cancer-related death globally, with more than half of all liver cancer cases linked to viral hepatitis.
For Cancer Council Victoria, this is not only a cancer challenge – it’s also an infectious disease challenge. Viral hepatitis is a Group 1 carcinogen – the same as tobacco and asbestos – but until now it has been largely overlooked in cancer control efforts.
Thanks to the support of ERDI Foundation and another long-time Cancer Council Victoria supporter, we’re leading a three-year micro-elimination project in the City of Wyndham and Melton – two of the fastest-growing, multicultural regions in the state, and home to more than 5,700 people living with chronic hepatitis B.
With so much of the population not in regular clinical care, they’ve been missing out on treatment and monitoring that can prevent liver cancer. This micro-elimination project is about changing that.
Working hand-in-hand with health providers, multicultural community leaders and people with lived experience – like Lien who co-founded Hepatitis B Voices Australia – the program is strengthening links to care, increasing diagnosis and breaking down stigma.
Lien is working in the community to make positive change
“When community are at the table of designing the program, designing the intervention, that's how we know we can make positive change,” Lien shared.
It is hoped this micro-elimination project can be scaled up to become a nation-wide program.
Liver Cancer Program Senior Manager, Charissa Feng
“This is cancer prevention in action, at the grassroots level,” said Cancer Council Victoria’s Liver Cancer Program Senior Manager, Charissa Feng.
“Our message is clear: liver cancer prevention works. It’s achievable, it’s cost-effective, and it’s urgent.”