Home » The Trap Hep C programme in Iceland

The Trap Hep C programme in Iceland

Despite great strides to reach the World Health Organisations (WHO) goal to eliminate viral hepatitis worldwide by 2030,1 300 million people are still believed to be living with hepatitis B or C, with most unaware of their condition and as a result not receiving the care and treatment they should 2. As we come closer to 2030, it has become clear that to eliminate viral hepatitis we must prioritise populations who do not regularly or proactively engage with healthcare, such as people who inject drugs (PWID), prisoners and migrants. The TraP Hep C programme – Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C: a nationwide elimination programme – in Iceland is an initiative driven by the goal to proactively engage with these priority populations. 3

The Trap Hep C programme in Iceland is a pioneering project established in 2016 as a collaborative initiative between the Icelandic Ministry of Health and Gilead with one simple aim: to achieve the elimination of hepatitis C in Iceland as a major health threat – for the benefit of Icelanders and to provide a model to enable other countries and regions to follow their lead.3-5

At the start of the project in 2016 it was estimated that there were 800 people living with the virus on the island (diagnosed and undiagnosed) with a large proportion of HCV sufferers being those at high risk of transmission, including PWID 6-8Three years later, around 80% of those living with HCV in Iceland have been cured.6  

As a result of the TraP Hep C programme, elimination of hepatitis C as a major health threat in Iceland looks possible.9

Watch the full Trap Hep C programme case study

 

For further information, contact:

Ragnheiður Hulda Friðriksdóttir, B.Sc, MBA

Project Manager
Landspítali, Hringbraut, 101 Reykjavík

Tel: 543 6096

Mobile: 824 5829

Further presentations and publications on hepatitis C in Iceland and the Trap Hep C programme:

  • Olafsson, S et al. Iceland may already have reached the WHO 2030 targets for diagnosis and treatment of hepatitis C virus infection. Results from the Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TrapHepC) program. Available at http://www.natap.org/2019/EASL/EASL_116.htm.
  • Olafsson S, et al. Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TraP Hep C) – a nationwide elimination programme in Iceland using direct-acting antiviral agents. J Intern Med 2018;283:500–507.
  • Rockstroh J. Summary from EASL 2018 for Hepatitis C (HCV). HCV in 2018: Success stories and remaining challenges? Available at: http://www.natap.org/2018/EASL/EASL_93.htm.
  • Gottfredsson M. Preliminary results from the Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TraP HepC) program in Iceland. Presented at the HIV and Hepatitis Nordic Conference 2018, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Olafsson S. Implementation of a successful treatment program for hepatitis C presented at the HIV and Hepatitis Nordic Conference 2018, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Olafsson S. Trap HepC (Treatment as prevention for hepatitis C in Iceland): An update. Poster presented at Stockholm Liver Week 2017, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Love A and Stanzeti B. Hepatitis C virus infection in Iceland: a recently introduced bloodborne disease. Epidemiol Infect 1994;113:529–536.

References

  1. World Health Organization (WHO). Global health sector strategy on viral hepatitis 2016–2021.June 2016. Available at: http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/246177/WHO-HIV-2016.06-eng.pdf?sequence=1 (accessed February 2019).
  2. World Hepatitis Day. Find the Missing Millions. 2019. Available at  http://www.worldhepatitisday.org/ Last accessed July 2019
  3. Olafsson S, et al. Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TraP Hep C) – a nationwide elimination programme in Iceland using direct-acting antiviral agents. J Intern Med 2018;283:500–507.
  4. Olafsson S. Trap Hep C (Treatment as prevention for hepatitis C in Iceland): An update. Poster presented at Stockholm Liver Week 2017, Stockholm, Sweden.
  5. Olafsson S. Implementation of a successful treatment program for hepatitis C presented at the HIV and Hepatitis Nordic Conference 2018, Stockholm, Sweden.
  6. Rockstroh J. Summary from EASL 2018 for Hepatitis C (HCV). HCV in 2018: Success stories and remaining challenges? Available at: http://www.natap.org/2018/EASL/EASL_93.htm (accessed July 2019).
  7. Love A and Stanzeti B. Hepatitis C virus infection in Iceland: a recently introduced bloodborne disease. Epidemiol Infect 1994;113:529–536.
  8. Gottfredsson M. Preliminary results from the Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TraP HepC) program in Iceland. Presented at the HIV and Hepatitis Nordic Conference 2018, Stockholm, Sweden
  9. Olafson, S et al. Iceland may already have reached the WHO 2030 targets for diagnosis and treatment of hepatitis C virus infection. Results from the Treatment as Prevention for Hepatitis C (TrapHepC) program. Available at http://www.natap.org/2019/EASL/EASL_116.htm

 

HCV/IHQ/19-09//2099 • Date of Preparation: September 2019