When Time Is of the Essence: Hepatitis C Virus RNA Point-of-Care Testing in 15 Minutes Becomes a Reality

(See the Major Article by Reed et al on pages 823–30.) It is not often the world gets a chance to eliminate an infectious disease of global significance as a public health threat [1–3]. The integration of hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening and treatment programs with effective harm reduction strategies offers a rare opportunity for countries and settings to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) HCV elimination goals by 2030 [4–9]. While finance and stigma remain major barriers to HCV elimination, a lack of access to laboratory-based HCV RNA testing continues to prevent people affected and at risk of HCV from receiving a diagnosis, treatment, and life-long cure [10–12]. In most settings globally, the conventional pathway to an HCV diagnosis and treatment requires multiple clinic visits: (1) to screen for exposure to HCV with an anti-HCV antibody test, (2) to test for active infection with an HCV RNA test, and (3) to receive a definitive diagnosis and treatment. The high cost and complexity of this conventional testing pathway, often requiring multiple appointments and locations, venous blood collection and processing, and a delay in laboratory test results, creates significant structural barriers that lead to frequent loss to follow-up and linkage to care [13].