Laboratory reports of hepatitis C infections in England and Wales: October to December 2024
Published 27 February 2025
Applies to England and Wales
© Crown copyright 2025
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Between October and December, a total of 2,626 laboratory reports of hepatitis C (HCV) were reported to UKHSA.
There was a 17% decrease in the number of reports compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 (n=3,153).
Since 2017, one laboratory in the North West of England has undertaken HCV dried blood spot testing alongside hepatitis C routine laboratory testing. This single laboratory has taken on testing for a large part of the country; however, some samples, where geographical information is lacking, may have been incorrectly assigned to this specific laboratory rather than the laboratory from which the sample originated.
Age and sex were well reported (99.8% complete). Where sex was known, males accounted for 69% of reports (1,635out of 2,626), which is higher than previous quarters and years. Adults aged 35 to 44 years accounted for 25% of the total number of hepatitis C reports.
Table 1. Laboratory reports of hepatitis C in England and Wales, October to December 2024*
| Age group | Males | Females | Unknown | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 4 years | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 5 to 9 years | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 to 14 years | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 to 24 years | 48 | 29 | 4 | 81 |
| 25 to 34 years | 224 | 129 | 7 | 360 |
| 35 to 44 years | 418 | 234 | 13 | 665 |
| 45 to 54 years | 384 | 178 | 6 | 568 |
| 55 to 64 years | 303 | 145 | 5 | 453 |
| ≥65 years | 254 | 227 | 6 | 487 |
| Unknown | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Total | 1,635 | 945 | 46 | 2,626 |
*Provisional data
Notes: Individuals aged under 1 year are excluded, since positive tests in this age group may reflect the presence of passively-acquired maternal antibody rather than true infection. Laboratory reports are not reliable for differentiating acute and chronic hepatitis C infections. Laboratory reports include individuals with a positive test for hepatitis C antibody, antigen and/or detection of hepatitis C RNA. A small proportion of these specimens are diagnosed following dried blood spot (DBS) testing; however, not all DBS testing is reported by laboratories.
In Table 2, laboratory reports are presented broken down by Operational Delivery Network (ODN). ODNs were launched in October 2013 following the publication of the NHS England strategy to sustain and develop clinical networks.
ODNs are the networks through which hepatitis C treatment is being delivered across England. Between October and December 2024, 2,081 out of 3,300 individuals in England had been allocated to an ODN.
Table 2. Laboratory reports of hepatitis C by Operational Delivery Network, October and December 2024*
| Primary ODN | Total |
|---|---|
| Barts | 186 |
| Birmingham | 119 |
| Bristol and Severn | 134 |
| Cheshire and Merseyside | 73 |
| Eastern Hepatitis Network | 75 |
| Greater Manchester and Eastern Cheshire | 189 |
| Humberside and North Yorkshire | 31 |
| Kent Network via Kings | 31 |
| Lancashire and South Cumbria | 88 |
| Leicester | 62 |
| North Central London | 101 |
| North East and Cumbria | 106 |
| Nottingham | 150 |
| South Thames Hepatitis Network | 147 |
| South West Peninsula | 45 |
| South Yorkshire | 81 |
| Surrey Hepatitis Services | 61 |
| Sussex Hepatology Network | 49 |
| Thames Valley Hep C ODN | 21 |
| Wessex Hep C ODN | 66 |
| West London | 194 |
| West Yorkshire | 71 |
*Provisional data
ODNs are based on NHS England Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) geographic boundaries. NHS England allocates a primary or lead ODN for CCGs which may cross more than one ODN.