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Hepatitis B (HBV) isn’t always obvious. In fact, many people are born with it and it stays quiet—until it isn’t.
For Lin, his wake-up call came suddenly, when an emergency hospitalization revealed his liver had failed.
“The earlier you find it, the better your chances of appropriate treatment,” says Lin.
Ken wishes he had known that “feeling fine” doesn’t mean his liver was safe. By the time he understood the risk, his liver had completely failed and he needed a transplant to survive.
“The most important thing I advise hepatitis B carriers is to have regular check-ups, especially to check liver function,” Ken says.
Kim grew up with loss, having already watched both his grandmother and mother die from liver cancer, and Fiona was told she had early stage cirrhosis—a warning she wished had come with clearer guidance years earlier, when more could have been done.
“As I get older I find health is number one and everything else is zero,” proclaims Fiona.
In addition to having their journeys with HBV in common, they all come from Asia-Pacific nations—Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan. 75% of HBV carriers are found in Asia and it accounts for 80% of all newly diagnosed liver cancer.
By sharing “What They Wish They Knew” in the above video, they hope others can take earlier actions to receive timely and appropriate treatment.