By Claire Lomax Telegraph & Argus Doctors at a Bradford surgery are raising awareness of hepatitis C this week.
Known as the silent killer, people can live with the disease undiagnosed and without symptoms for years. Experts believe only one in eight people affected knows.
Starting today, the first World Hepatitis Day, doctors at Rooley Lane Medical Centre in Bierley will be handing patients a quick set of questions to see if they are at risk.
It is estimated that there are as many as 466,000 people living with hepatitis C in England, but fewer than 70,000 have been diagnosed. One in 12 people are infected with hepatitis B or C worldwide. World Hepatitis Day is a chance for medical professionals in more than 50 countries to draw people's attention to these shocking facts.
Charles Gore, chief executive of The Hepatitis C Trust, said: "I fully support and applaud these GPs who are among the first in the country to take a pro-active approach to hepatitis C.
"GPs are at the front line and their involvement is crucial in helping people to understand this often-ignored disease.
"The lack of awareness about viral hepatitis in the UK and abroad is causing huge numbers of preventable deaths."
10:01pm Sunday 18th May 2008
