Tx! MAG #29

edition

29

JUNE 2018

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A WORD FROM THE EDITOR! Hey Tx!-ians!

Welcome to Tx! Mag #29 - our second edition focused on hep B (although we've also included hep C in one story... since people can live with both viruses at the same time).

In B Is For BABY, Kat is several weeks into her pregnancy when a blood test reveals she is living with hep B. Most people with hep B came into contact with the virus at birth, so is it possible for Kat to have her baby without passing on her hep B? Double Trouble sees Evan and Ben, both in prison, decide to take blood tests for hep C - yes, that's right, hep C. Ben then finds out he also has to deal with hepatitis B as well as hepatitis C. Can he cure his hep C and manage his hep B? Hep B and hep C are both blood-borne viruses that can damage the liver... but that's about where the similarities end. They are very different viruses - hep B can also be passed on in sexual fluids; there is a vaccine for hep B but not hep C; there is a cure for hep C but not hep B. Confused? Check out the back page as hep B and hep C battle it out - rap style.

EDITOR/DESIGNER Grace Crowley EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Tim Baxter Ben Cork Paul Harvey Maria McMahon Sonam Paljor Lucy Pepolim Kate Pinnock Rhea Shortus Thomas Wright SPECIAL THANKS Kyle Leadbeatter STORY WRITERS Charlie Foster (B Is For Baby) Lawrence Gergich (Double Trouble) COMIC ARTISTS Emily K. Smith (B Is For Baby) Skye Ogden (Double Trouble) gestaltcomics.com

Also, check out our puzzles and don't forget to send in the survey form for a chance to win one of four $100 vouchers.

Cheers!

Grace Tx! Mag Ed Aside from Hepatitis NSW editorial content, views expressed in this magazine or flyers enclosed with it are not necessarily those of Hepatitis NSW or the organisations with whom we collaborate.

Neither are such views necessarily those of our funding bodies.

Tx! Mag does not promote or condone the use of illicit drugs.

Rather, it seeks to provide accurate information that will help people who already use drugs to reduce risks and make safer choices. Nothing in this magazine should be taken as recommending drug use.

Hepatitis NSW is proud to acknowledge Aboriginal people as the traditional owners and custodians of our lands and waters.

Hepatitis Infoline 1800 803 990 (freecall) p: 02 9332 1853 e: info@hep.org.au w: hep.org.au fb: facebook.com/HepNSW tw: @HepatitisNSW PO Box 432 Darlinghurst, NSW 1300 ABN 30 408 095 245 A non-profit health promotion charity funded by the NSW Ministry of Health. Accredited by the Quality Improvement Council of Australia (QIC). Donations of $2 and over are tax deductible.

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PLEASE ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS...

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Hepatitis NSW respects your right to privacy. We have a policy and set of procedures on how we collect, use, disclose and hold your personal info.

For a copy of the policy, please contact us on 02 9332 1853 or visit hep.org.au

Being vaccinated is the easiest and most effective way to prevent getting hep B. The vaccination stimulates your body to produce antibodies... it’s like giving your immune system the secret to defeating the virus if you ever come into contact with it.

It's important to get children immunised. Of children who aren't vaccinated, over 9 out of 10 who get hep B (either at birth or through other ways) will have it for the rest of their life. The vaccine is safe, effective and the best way to ensure protection against the hep B virus. n ADULTS: the vaccine is three injections spread out over six months. n BABIES: the vaccination is four injections over the first six months of a child’s life – at birth, 2 months, 4 months and 6 months.

Vaccinations are free for: n All people who live in a house with someone who has hep B; n Those with a sexual partner who has hep B; n Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; n People who inject drugs; n People in prison; n People with HIV; n Men who have sex with men; n People with hep C.

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HEP B TESTING

ASK YOUR DOCTOR TO TEST IF YO

HEP B TEST RESULTS WILL

A CURRENT INFECTION - YOU HAVE HEP B RIGHT NOW.

IMMUN YOU HAV AND AR YOU C

2ND HEP B TEST (6 MONTHS LATER) TAKE THE TEST AGAIN TO SEE IF YOU STILL HAVE HEP B (IF YOU HAVE HEP B LONGER THAN 6 MONTHS IT MEANS YOUR BODY CAN’T FIGHT IT OFF).

CHRONIC HEP B YOU HAVE HAD HEP B FOR MORE THAN 6 MONTHS. THIS MEANS YOU WILL HAVE HEP B FOR LIFE.

RESOLVED HEP B INFECTION YOU HAD HEP B BUT YOUR BODY FOUGHT IT OFF. YOU CAN’T GET HEP B AGAIN.

CHECK-UPS EVERY 6 MONTHS TO STAY HEALTHY, IT’S IMPORTANT TO BOOK REGULAR CHECK-UPS WITH YOUR DOCTOR. THEY WILL TALK TO YOU ABOUT TREATMENT OPTIONS.

YOUR SEXUAL PARTNERS OR FAMILY MIGHT HAVE HEP B TOO. TALK TO THEM ABOUT GETTING TESTED.

*

NO A YOU AGA C

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MONTHS

*IF YOU HAVE HEP B FOR LIFE 14

People with hep B can live long, healthy lives. To make sure you stay as healthy as you can, it is doctor every 6-12 months. At your check-up, your doctor will do a blood test and sometimes a your liver is healthy and work out if you should be on treatment. They will also talk to you about

G FOR ADULTS

OU HAVE HEP B OR ARE IMMUNE

TELL YOU IF YOU HAVE...

NITY (VACCINATION) VE BEEN VACCINATED RE IMMUNE TO HEP B. CAN’T GET HEP B.

ACTION NEEDED U ARE PROTECTED AINST HEP B AND CAN’T GET IT.

IMMUNITY (PAST INFECTION) YOU ARE IMMUNE TO HEP B. YOU HAD HEP B IN THE PAST, BUT YOUR BODY FOUGHT IT OFF. YOU CAN’T GET HEP B AGAIN.

YOUR FAMILY MIGHT HAVE HEP B TOO. TALK TO THEM ABOUT GETTING TESTED.

s important that you have check-ups with your liver scan. Check-ups help your doctor make sure t what you can do to help keep your liver healthy.

NO IMMUNITY YOU DON’T HAVE HEP B, BUT YOU COULD STILL GET IT.

GET VACCINATED FOR HEP B ASK YOUR DOCTOR OR NURSE, COMMUNITY HEALTH CLINIC, SEXUAL HEALTH CLINIC, TRAVEL CLINIC OR AMS ABOUT GETTING VACCINATED.

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HEPATITIS INFO, SUPPORT, REFERRAL ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT HEP B OR HEP C?

1800 803 990 To organise an interpreter service call 131 450 Chat to us live: hep.org.au FREE CALL FROM PRISON n Enter MIN n Enter PIN n Press 2 for Common Calls list n Press 3 for Hepatitis Infoline

Have you seen our brand new mobile-friendly Hepatitis NSW website?

Check it out at hep.org.au It's full of information about hep C & hep B. Find out how to look after yourself and protect yourself and others.

You can have Tx! Mag delivered to you.

Become a Hepatitis NSW member for free:

call 1800 803 990

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TEST

IN PRISON? n Could you have hep C? n Ever shared injecting equipment or had a home/prison tattoo/piercing? n Get tested. Know your status.

If you’ve ever done things with blood-to-blood contact - things like injecting drugs, home tattoos, fights, body piercing - you may have picked up hep C. Even just once is enough to get hep C. You can’t tell if someone has hep C just by looking at them. There are no signs when you first get hep C.

To find out if you have hep C you may need two blood tests: n Antibody blood test: tells if you have ever come into contact with the hep C virus.

If this result is positive you’ll need the second test. n PCR blood test: tells you if have the hep C virus now.

CURE

The great news is there is an easy cure for hep C for all adults with a Medicare number.

Ask the nurse for a test or fill out the blue selfreferral form to get a test. It’s confidential.

THE NEW TREATMENTS n 95% successful cures. n Few or no side effects. n Taken as tablets for 8-12 weeks.

Most NSW prisons have Health Centres where you can get on hep C treatment . Talk to the nurse about getting cured it’s confidential.

HEPATITIS INFOLINE - FREE CALL n ENTER MIN. n ENTER PIN NUMBER. n PRESS 2 FOR COMMON CALLS n PRESS 3 FOR HEPATITIS INFOLINE

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LOOKING FOR MORE TO READ? ALL PAST ISSUES ARE ONLINE AT: hep.org.au/tx-mag

TX! MAG #28 [HEP C]

A Fine Line Morgan and her school friends get a group tattoo, and an extra surprise.

Not Again Blake wants his first hep C treatment to be his only.

TX! MAG #25 [HEP C]

Ch-ch-changes Sam and Clara have both been living with hep C for a long time. Will the new treatments change all that for them?

TX! MAG #27 [HEP C]

Best Shot After 20 years with hep C, Lisa is excited to learn of new cures. Emad, less so.

Livin' Doug takes on the challenges of life and hep C testing.

TX! MAG #24 [HEP C]

Change Of Plans Lola gets a tattoo in prison with a pre-used and unsterile needle... not much later she finds out she now has hep C too.

TX! MAG #26 [HEP B]

Can't "B" Happening Gina gets some surprise news from her ex-boyfriend.

One Step At A Time Mick has to deal with a flare up in his hep B.

TRANSMISSION #23 [C]

Need-To-Know Frank's in prison for three years – while he’s inside he struggles with indecision about whether to get himself tested for hep C or not.

CROSSWORD 1 TARGET R A S E R L E R F

How many words of four letters or more can you make from the letters here? In making a word, each letter may be used once only. Each word must contain the centre letter, and there must be at least one nine-letter word. No foreign words, no words with initial capitals and no hyphenated words.

ACROSS 1. Pecan; almond; pistachio; cashew, etc (3) 3. The second number (3) 5. A chunk of metal dug from the ground (3) 6. If someone is amazed they might say this (3) 8. Nothing; zero (3) 10. Join numbers to calculate their total (3) 12. Suitable; fitting; appropriate (3) 14. Painting; drawing; creative expression (3) 15. A pea comes from one (3) 16. Listen with one of these (3)

DOWN 1. This moment (3) 2. Pull a vehicle or boat along (3) 3. Five plus five (3) 4. Lubricant; stops a squeaking sound (3) 7. Not young (3) 9. Little devil or trouble maker (3) 10. Short for "ampere" (3) 11. Father (3) 12. Gobbled food (3) 13. Dark, thick gunk used in road-making (3) Solution next page

What's your score?

5 Meh. But at least you tried!

13 Pretty good, eh?

22 Awesome 40 Holy crap! Mega genius!

88+ You are clearly a human dictionary and/or computer...we didn't even know half of those crazy words!

Answers next page

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A little bit harder...!

TARGET SOLUTION (red=more common) ares, arse, earl, earls, ears, eras, erase, eraser, errs, falser, fare, farer, fares, farl, fear, fearer, fears, feral, fere, flare, flares, fleer, frae, free, freer, frees, lares, laser, leaser, leer, leers, rale, rales, rare, rarer, rares, rase, real, realer, reales, reals, rear, rears, reef, reefs, reel, reels, refer, referral, REFERRALS, refers, refs, resale, reseal, safer, saree, sealer, sear, seer, sera, sere, serer, serf

T I O N E S E A C H T F A UR G N E

N F OW L N I E GG H POT I EN T L K

CROSSWORD 2 SOLUTION

Solution at right (no peeking now!!)

S T A A R P AG S U B E L HA L N S K I

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CROSSWORD 1 SOLUTION

1. Drains a person's strength. (4) 2. Exchange different views in an angry way. (5) 3. A cockroach is one, is is a cricket or a fly. (6) 4. Not any. (4) 5. A plane trip. (5) 9. A sheet of paper with nothing on it. (5) 11. Pigs make this sound! (4) 13. Enjoyment; pleasure. (3) 14. Length of time a person has lived. (3) 16. A Spanish word for "the". (2)

N U T T W O O O R E I W O W N I L L M A D D A P T M A R T A P O D E A R

1. Trains will stop at one of these. (7) 6. "Wise bird" that hoots. (3) 7. Sheets in a book or magazine. (5) 8. A hen might lay one of these. (3) 9. Sandy strip where sea and land meet. (5) 10. For cooking in. (3) 12. 50% of something. (4) 15. Requiring immediate action. (6) 17. Covers your body from head to toe. (4) 18. Animal with antlers; moose. (3)

MORE INFO ON HEP B OR HEP C - 1800 803 990