Health care professionals across the state will gather in Honolulu this weekend to get a better grip on what's called a silent epidemic.
Hawaii has some of the highest rates of Hepatitis infections in America.
It's called the "silent epidemic" by health care professionals because people can live for years without knowing they're infected with Hepatitis.
And one infectious disease specialist wants to change that.
"We can stop these viruses. We can help Hawaiians and we can help everybody else that comes here to stop this virus, to prevent cancer of the liver, and to prevent cirrhosis," said Dr. Alan Tice, an infectious disease specialist.
One in fifty people in Hawaii are living with Hepatitis C.
Our state has large immigrant population, people in that category suffer at an even higher rate.
"The other thing is anyone born in another country, who didn't have the advantage of the vaccines that Americans have, Micronesia, China, the Philippines, if they were born there they may well have had a mother that had Hepatitis B and gave it to them at birth," said Tice.
And so health care professionals can attend a symposium being held this Saturday in an effort to raise awareness about hepatitis and what can be done.
"If a person has it, look at treatment an there are some really good treatment for Hepatitis B now, just pills. And there are pills coming from research for Hepatitis C as well," said Tice.
