Malaysia's hepatitis B gains undone by fatty liver disease, liver cancer rising
Malaysia's universal infant hepatitis B vaccination, begun in 1989, cut childhood carriage six-fold, but adults born before 1989 remain untested and a 2023 national survey found fatty liver disease in 28 per cent of adults. Liver cancer has climbed from the eighth to a higher rank in the national cancer registry, driven by undiagnosed hepatitis and metabolic liver disease.