Photo: Hepatitis C awareness campaign gets musical kick-off

Chelsey June and Jaaji Okpik, known as The Twin Flames to music lovers all over the North, perform at an event held May 12 in Ottawa by the Pauktuutit Inuit women’s association to raise awareness about hepatitis C. The hepatitis C virus, which attacks the liver, was not discovered until 1989 and is transmitted through blood-to-blood contact. The virus can stay in the body for 20 to 30 years with no symptoms, but active infections can cause serious damage to the liver. Pauktuutit warns that 70 to 80 per cent of people who carry the hepatitis C virus get it through sharing needles while engaged in intravenous drug use, or through sharing pipes used to smoke drugs like crack or methamphetamine. It can also be passed on by body piercing and tattooing, unprotected sex (especially if blood is present), and sharing personal care items like nail files, razors and toothbrushes. Pauktuutit is now producing educational materials to help Inuit understand how to protect themselves from hepatitis C. Read more later on Nunatsiaqonline.ca (PHOTO BY JIM BELL)