Jon Secada joins Hepatitis C awareness campaign

MIAMI (AP) ? Three-time Grammy winner Jon Secada wishes his father Jose hadn't kept his Hepatitis C diagnosis a secret.

The Cuban-American singer-songwriter's father died last year from complications related to the virus and failed to get the help he needed in time. Hispanics make up an estimated one-third of the 3.2 million Americans who suffer from Hepatitis C, which can remain in the body for years and severely damage the liver. Yet there has long been a stigma around the illness, because it can be contracted through needle exchange and sex.

Secada will lend his voice Thursday to a campaign to raise awareness among Hispanics about the disease. The American Liver Foundation and the pharmaceutical company Merck ? known as MSD in Latin America ? are sponsoring the campaign.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-02-16-People-Secada/id-040648dbfada458d8651380f2462551a

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