May 19th 2008 is set to see the fourth annual year of Campaigning to raise awareness about a disease called Hepatitis. If you haven’t heard of it already or you have but aren’t sure of what it entails then read on…

HAV, HBV, HCV, HDV, HEV, HFV and HGV all fall under the definition of Hepatitis and these terms are used to describe the different strains of virus which affect the liver, causing inflammation and even cirrhosis. A person who has contracted the Hepatitis virus may not experience any symptoms at all (especially with Hepatitis A, or ‘HAV’) and do not think to get tested until the disease becomes chronic and they start to feel ill. Common symptoms include feeling fluey, nausea, diarrhoea, jaundice and joint and/or muscle pain. Unfortunately, curing Hepatitis gets harder the longer it is left in the body and since symptoms don’t always appear immediately.

Therefore, the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) began campaigning in 2004 to teach people how to cut out the risks of catching the disease and what can be done to stop its spread. If you would like to join the campaign then please visit www.aminumber12.org.