00:04On an island in shimmering Moreton Bay, Dave Kloon has carved out a sanctuary against all the odds.
00:13He grew up in a large family in New Zealand, in a region affected by poverty, domestic violence and alcohol.
00:20As a six and seven year old, I spend a lot of time wandering the streets.
00:25For 50 years, Dave's life has been shadowed by childhood trauma and a virus that's cost him his health.
00:34When I was about 17, 18, hepatitis appeared in my life, come up on a blood test.
00:42The origins of the hepatitis infection are a mystery, possibly contracted through drug use, tattoos or the sexual abuse he
00:50survived.
00:52But the 67-year-old's story is also one of love.
00:57As a broken young lad, he met Grace at a nightclub.
01:02The minute I set eyes on her...
01:06Hmm.
01:08They've been together for five decades, raising four children and moving across the ditch to Australia to escape discrimination.
01:16I got diagnosed around about the same time as the AIDS campaign, when they had their Grim Reaper campaign going,
01:24and we all got put in the same basket.
01:28Hepatitis scarred his liver, triggered cancer and pushed him close to death before he received a liver and kidney transplant
01:36in Brisbane.
01:37It's estimated 48,000 Queenslanders live with chronic hepatitis B or C.
01:45Modelling suggests up to 30% of cases are undiagnosed.
01:50We have the tools to test and treat viral hepatitis and liver cancer, but we're just not getting them to
01:57the people that most need them.
01:58More than a quarter of hepatitis C infections occur among Indigenous people, who make up less than 5% of
02:06the population.
02:07It's a simple blood test and it can be the difference between preventing liver cancer into the future.
02:13Disadvantaged communities need more testing for viral hepatitis.
02:18Other risks for contracting it include getting a backyard tattoo or having dental or cosmetic work done overseas.
02:26Dave Kloon wants others to avoid what he's endured.
02:30Just ask for a simple blood test.
02:33It can save anybody going through what we've been through.
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