Michael Angarone, DO: Virus Outbreaks, Treating Hepatitis C in Developing Countries

In an interview with HCPLive, Michael P. Angarone, DO, Associate Professor of Medicine at Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine, described the public’s general perception of disease outbreaks before going into a discussion about developing countries’ responses to hepatitis C.

The discussion covered Angarone’s presentation for Pri-Med Midwest 2022, during which some of his talking points included infectious diseases and outbreaks. Angarone’s research frequently covers fungal infections, infections in organ transplant and stem cell recipients, and sexually-transmitted infections.

“There's kind of a, I think, a psychological pandemic, and then there's the actual biologic pandemic, that biologic pandemic, it's going to be here for a very long time until some other virus overtakes it,” he explained. “And so I think we should communicate, so as providers as public communicators, we should communicate to the public that the pandemic is here.”

Angarone elaborated on this point, describing the danger to specific populations with regard to SARS-CoV-2 infections.

“I think it's a balance,” he explained. “And I think it's a balance of what is good for myself as an individual, what is good for society at large? And how do I help all of those that are around me? And I think that's the approach and that's the way that we can communicate that it's not as dire as it was two years ago.”

The discussion shifted to the dangers of hepatitis C in developing countries, as well as the ways in which these countries can get better access to medications.

“I think that needs to be number one: ‘How do we make these treatments affordable, so that they can be brought to the areas of the world where they're needed, and be given to those individuals that we know we need to target for treatment?’" he said. “And then I think once we have that, within those areas of the world, promoting people getting tested and treated…I think if you can work both of those, you have the these countries that have the resources, and now they can go out and they can target and market it towards the people that need it.”

View the interview with Dr. Angarone to understand key takeaways from his Pri-Med Midwest 2022 presentation.