CITY AT CENTER OF 'HEP C' EPIDEMIC

Hepatitis C has "exploded" into a statewide epidemic, with a doubling
of reported cases in the last five years seen as only "the tip of the
iceberg," officials told The Post.

"New York City is the epicenter," said Dr. Guthrie Birkhead of the
state Health Department.

The agency is sponsoring a conference in Manhattan this week to
unveil battle plans to stop "the silent epidemic" - so called because
many people infected with the blood-borne virus show no symptoms for
20 or more years.

By then, the chronic infection has developed into deadly liver
disease, usually requiring a transplant.

"A lot of people don't know they have it, so they don't get tested,"
Birkhead said. "The cases we do get reported are probably the tip of
the iceberg of what's out there."

According to the most recent statistics, New York City tallied 14,297
new cases of hepatitis C in 2005.

The state is still gathering data from prior years, but officials are
bracing for a steep hike, based on other findings.

For instance, the number of new cases in the rest of the state -
7,119 last year - has doubled from the 3,451 in 2001.

"We expect a similar explosion in New York City," said state Health
Department spokesman Marc Carey.

Hepatitis C infects nearly three times as many people as AIDS. Like
HIV, it is commonly spread via intravenous needles by those who
inject heroin, steroids and other illegal drugs.

"The sharing of equipment and needles between people is usually how
this virus gets transmitted," Birkhead said.

Having sex with multiple partners also puts people at risk.

Health officials plan to fight the virus' spread by calling on
patients who may be at risk and their doctors to ask for tests.

They also want to spread the word that a cure has emerged in the last
five years. Interferon injections combined with oral medication can
wipe out the virus in more than half of patients, if caught in time,
Birkhead said.