Free hep B test, low-cost vaccination offered in SJ
Free hepatitis B screenings and low-cost vaccinations will be given in Santa Clara County beginning March 1 in a program launched in part by the Stanford Asian Liver Center. The center's Santa Clara Hep B Free Campaign will target the adult Asian and Pacific Islander community, which is disproportionately affected by hepatitis B.
Of the half-million Asians and Pacific Islanders in the county, a recent study estimated that one in 10—potentially 50,000 residents—is infected with hepatitis B. Two-thirds may be unaware of that fact. Untreated infection can lead to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer.
The program will be held on the first and third Saturday of every month in 2008, from 10 a.m to 1 p.m. at Asian Americans for Community Involvement, 2400 Moorpark Ave., Suite 111, in San Jose.
The program is sponsored by the Asian Liver Center, Asian Americans for Community Involvement and the California Department of Public Health. For information, contact Aarti Rao at 724-2923 or akrao@stanford.edu, or go to http://liver.stanford.edu.