A STUDY that won the “Best Poster Award” in Public Health at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) Congress 2025 sheds light on a pressing issue: migrants and refugees from regions with high hepatitis B and C (HBV/HCV) rates are at significantly greater risk of infection, and often lack access to care.
The Viral Hepatitis Community Screening, Vaccination, and Care (VH-COMSAVAC) project, co-funded by the EU, has been working in Italy, Greece, and Spain to address this gap. Over two years (November 2022–November 2024), the project screened 1,854 migrants and refugees using rapid tests in community centres, NGOs, faith-based spaces, and prisons. The initiative focused on decentralised, culturally sensitive care supported by community health workers and intercultural mediators.
The median age of participants was 37 (IQR 29–47), with nearly half (47.9%) having arrived in the EU within the past five years. The majority were male (74.3%), and most were from sub-Saharan Africa (29.0%) and Eastern Europe (17.0%). Alarmingly, 67.5% had never been tested for HBV or HCV before, only 44.3% had heard of the infections, and a mere 8.4% reported being fully vaccinated against HBV.
The prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was found to be 3.6%, and anti-HCV antibodies at 3.1%, highlighting significant disease burden in this population. The VH-COMSAVAC model successfully established referral pathways to tertiary care centres, linking those who tested positive to treatment.
The study concludes that decentralised and person-centred hepatitis screening is effective and essential. However, it also calls for urgent policy reforms to dismantle legal barriers that prevent migrants and refugees from accessing healthcare across the full cascade of care.
This pioneering study not only offers a blueprint for better hepatitis control but also a call to action for more inclusive healthcare systems in Europe.
Reference
Picchio C et al. Community-based screening of viral hepatitis infections among high risk migrant and refugee populations in Greece, Italy and Spain: 2-year results of the VH-COMSAVAC project. Abstract TOP-001-YI. EASL Congress, 7-10 May, 2025.
