Discoverer of Hepatitis B Virus & Developer of Hepatitis B Vaccine
SAN FRANCISCO (August 30, 2010) –Nobel Laureate Dr. Baruch Blumberg who discovered the Hepatitis B Virus and developed the Hepatitis Vaccine will be honored by the Chinese Hospital and San Francisco’s Hepatitis B community. The honor will take place at the Hep B Free Coast to Coast dinner on September 16 at the Regency Grand Ballroom. For ticket or sponsorship information, please go to http://sfhepbfree.org/gala/.
San Francisco’s Hep B Free has created an innovative ecosystem which includes over 50 private and public organizations whose goal is to turn San Francisco into the first hepatitis B city nationwide. Their successful public health model has inspired a national Hep B Free movement from coast to coast.
The 37th Annual Award will be bestowed by the Chinese Hospital in recognition of Dr. Blumberg’s contribution to improving the health of Asians. The night's event is presented by SF Hep B Free and Chinese Hospital, and produced by the AsianWeek Foundation. Past notable awardees include Dr. Samuel So, Director, Asian Liver Center at Stanford University, Dr. David Ho, Director of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center and Dr. James Y. Suen, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Otolaryngology, University of Arkansas & President Bill Clinton’s personal physician.
“As one of the first institutions in the U.S, to provide community screenings for Hepatitis B, honoring Dr. Blumberg is particularly meaningful for us,” said Dr. Joseph Woo, Chief of Staff, Chinese Hospital. “Without Dr. Blumberg’s extraordinary discovery, we would not have been able to help our community and save lives.”
Blumberg received the 1976 Nobel Prize in medicine for his discovery of the Hepatitis B Virus, and in the development of the first vaccine to fight Hepatitis B. His research has had a major impact on worldwide public health. Blumberg is a professor of medicine and anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania and Distinguished Scientist at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. More recently, he has been involved in research at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, where he is director of the NASA Astrobiology Institute, which studies the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life in the universe.
“The means are available to prevent and treat Hepatitis B Virus infection,” said Blumberg. “These good outcomes can only be fully achieved if the public, and particularly populations with a high rate of infection, including those of Asian origin, are educated about the virus and take part in the program of vaccination, detection, and treatment. The Chinese Hospital, Hep B Free Campaign in San Francisco, along with others such as those of the Hepatitis B Foundation in Pennsylvania and other Hep B free initiatives across the nation are making the public aware of the problem and leading the efforts to solve it.”
Recently, the World Health Organization passed a resolution to mark World Hepatitis Day on July 28, Blumberg’s birthday.
About Hepatitis B (source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
There are more than 43,000 new Hepatitis B cases in United States each year, with the greatest incidence among adults between ages 19–49 years old.Hepatitis B is one of the leading health disparities between Asians and non-Hispanic whites.Among the Asian population the predominant mode of transmission is from infected mother to child during the birthing process. Hepatitis B can also be spread through unprotected sex and shared needles.There is a safe and effective vaccine to protect against infection from Hepatitis B.
About Chinese Hospital
Chinese Hospital, a community-owned, not-for-profit organization, exists primarily to deliver quality health care in a cost effective way, responsive to the community's ethnic and cultural uniqueness. The hospital provides access to health care and acceptability to all socioeconomic levels. Chinese Hospital is governed by a voluntary Board of Trustees, broadly representative of the community, and strives to assume a leadership role in all health matters. For more info, go to http://www.chinesehospital-sf.org.
About AsianWeek Foundation
AsianWeek Foundationis a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and develop Asian Pacific American identity, community and diversity. AWF does this by bringing people together through cultural events, media campaigns, consulting and innovative programs. AWF encourages the sharing of differences and appreciation of diversity, and works to strengthen relations between all Asian and Pacific Islander cultures, newer and older generations of Asian Pacific Americans, and Asians and non-Asians.
About San Francisco Hep B Free
San Francisco Hep B Free is a first-of-its-kind collaboration between city government, private healthcare community organizations and businesses. The campaign’s goal is to make San Francisco Hepatitis B-free by (1) creating public and healthcare provider awareness about the importance of testing & vaccinating Asian and Pacific Islanders for Hepatitis B; (2) promoting routine Hepatitis B screenings and vaccinations within the primary care medical community; and (3) facilitating access to treatment for chronically infected individuals. The SF Hep B Free Steering Committee is made up of the San Francisco Department of Public Health, the Asian Liver Center at Stanford University and the Asian Week Foundation. For more info, please go to www.sfhepbfree.org.
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Media Contact:
Grace Niwa, Niwa Public Relations
(617) 299-9848
grace@niwapr.com
Monday, August 30, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Hepatitis B: An Asian-American Plague?
by Chris Santiago | Change.org
"In the Asian-American family, usually parents don't want to discuss if they have diseases," Albert Ng recently told NPR while attending San Francisco's Asian Heritage Street Fair. "They just want to discuss the good stuff, but never discuss the weaknesses."
Ng was at a booth getting tested for hepatitis B for the first time in his life. One in 10 Asian-Americans is chronically infected with the disease; when left untreated, hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. San Francisco has the highest liver cancer rate in the country, and this is mostly due to the city's famously large population of Asian-Americans, for whom hep B has become an epidemic. Of the 1.25 million Americans who are affected by hep B, half are Asian-Americans.
Why is hepatitis B so common among Asians? The disease is thought to have originated in Asia centuries ago. It's passed down from infected mothers to newborn infants. While blood tests can detect the hep B virus, most physicians in the U.S. only test those who engage in high-risk behaviors, such as unprotected sex or intravenous drug use. Many doctors simply aren't aware that Asian immigrants, especially those from China, are much more likely to have been infected at birth.
To make matters worse, many Asian-Americans who could have been infected at birth may be completely in the dark about the matter. As Ng pointed out to NPR, traditional Asian values may be partly to blame: It's not unlikely that Asian immigrants who knew they were infected with hep B regarded that fact as something shameful, as something that was better not to be discussed.
Some Asian-Americans that I know well also take a fatalistic attitude toward histories of hep B and liver cancer in their families. "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen," is how the conversation often turns. "Better to live your life without worrying about it."
The thing is, hep B can be suppressed with medication, if it's caught early.
"This is a disease [for] which, unlike HIV, we have all the solutions," Samuel So, director of the Asian Liver Center at Stanford University, told NPR. "We know how to prevent it. We have a very effective vaccine; we have treatments which can help to suppress the virus, and yet we are not doing a good job."
Which brings us back to Albert Ng: In addition to a hard-hitting public awareness campaign, city health officials in San Francisco have begun offering free testing, vaccination and treatment to all residents. Ng was getting tested because it turns out that his own grandfather died of liver cancer caused by hepatitis B.
Nationwide, liver cancer and hep B are becoming an Asian-American epidemic. To combat this epidemic, the community needs to talk, and it also needs to shake a few trees. Take the city of New York, for example: 12% of the population of New York is Asian-American. But as recently as 2008, less than one percent of social services were channeled toward the Asian-American community. According to the Coaltion for Asian American Children & Families, Asian-Americans were 10 times as likely to develop liver cancer as the rest of the population of New York.
San Francisco's program is promising, and other cities plan to replicate its efforts. But to combat liver cancer and hep B, we're going to need to raise money — and our voices.
Photo Credit: San Francisco Hep B Free
Chris Santiago is a freelance writer and editor who until recently was an editor at McGraw-Hill.
"In the Asian-American family, usually parents don't want to discuss if they have diseases," Albert Ng recently told NPR while attending San Francisco's Asian Heritage Street Fair. "They just want to discuss the good stuff, but never discuss the weaknesses."Ng was at a booth getting tested for hepatitis B for the first time in his life. One in 10 Asian-Americans is chronically infected with the disease; when left untreated, hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. San Francisco has the highest liver cancer rate in the country, and this is mostly due to the city's famously large population of Asian-Americans, for whom hep B has become an epidemic. Of the 1.25 million Americans who are affected by hep B, half are Asian-Americans.
Why is hepatitis B so common among Asians? The disease is thought to have originated in Asia centuries ago. It's passed down from infected mothers to newborn infants. While blood tests can detect the hep B virus, most physicians in the U.S. only test those who engage in high-risk behaviors, such as unprotected sex or intravenous drug use. Many doctors simply aren't aware that Asian immigrants, especially those from China, are much more likely to have been infected at birth.
To make matters worse, many Asian-Americans who could have been infected at birth may be completely in the dark about the matter. As Ng pointed out to NPR, traditional Asian values may be partly to blame: It's not unlikely that Asian immigrants who knew they were infected with hep B regarded that fact as something shameful, as something that was better not to be discussed.
Some Asian-Americans that I know well also take a fatalistic attitude toward histories of hep B and liver cancer in their families. "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen," is how the conversation often turns. "Better to live your life without worrying about it."
The thing is, hep B can be suppressed with medication, if it's caught early.
"This is a disease [for] which, unlike HIV, we have all the solutions," Samuel So, director of the Asian Liver Center at Stanford University, told NPR. "We know how to prevent it. We have a very effective vaccine; we have treatments which can help to suppress the virus, and yet we are not doing a good job."
Which brings us back to Albert Ng: In addition to a hard-hitting public awareness campaign, city health officials in San Francisco have begun offering free testing, vaccination and treatment to all residents. Ng was getting tested because it turns out that his own grandfather died of liver cancer caused by hepatitis B.
Nationwide, liver cancer and hep B are becoming an Asian-American epidemic. To combat this epidemic, the community needs to talk, and it also needs to shake a few trees. Take the city of New York, for example: 12% of the population of New York is Asian-American. But as recently as 2008, less than one percent of social services were channeled toward the Asian-American community. According to the Coaltion for Asian American Children & Families, Asian-Americans were 10 times as likely to develop liver cancer as the rest of the population of New York.
San Francisco's program is promising, and other cities plan to replicate its efforts. But to combat liver cancer and hep B, we're going to need to raise money — and our voices.
Photo Credit: San Francisco Hep B Free
Chris Santiago is a freelance writer and editor who until recently was an editor at McGraw-Hill.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
ABC7: "Beyond the Headlines: Asian Roundtable"
ABC7's Emmy award-winning public affairs show, "Beyond the Headlines," provides in-depth coverage of the topics and issues facing the people of the Bay Area. Throughout the year, "Beyond the Headlines" airs half-hour specials on issues, ranging from Bay Area housing to same-sex marriage.
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=7526520
BEYOND THE HEADLINES
June 27, 2010
Hosted by ABC7's Kristen Sze
This week's show looks at our Asian American community. We invited four Bay Area leaders representing various fields, to talk about being Asian American today, and the opportunities and challenges facing the community.
Let's begin with a snapshot of the population. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Census in 2000 found that:
- There are close to 12 million Asians living in the United States.
- That's 4.2% of the entire population.
- California has the largest Asian population, with 4.2 million.
- Of the nation's largest cities with a population of 100,000 or greater, the Bay Area has the highest percentage of Asians.
Topics covered include:
* Leadership
* Business
* Politics
* Media and the Arts, Stereotypes
* Hepatitis B and Health Disparities
* Current Issues
Studio Guests:
Charles Huang
Co-Founder and Executive Vice-President, Guitar Hero
www.guitarherocorp.com/about.php
Kyung Yoon
Founder/CEO, Talent Age Associates
www.talentage.com/about_bios.html
Fiona Ma
Assembly Member, District 12
democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a12/
415-557-2312
Jeff Adachi
San Francisco Public Defender
sfpublicdefender.org
415-553-1671
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