Doctors say Hepatitis B, the "silent killer", is becoming a major problem, with 200 new liver cancer patients being added every year. The reported number of Hepatitis B patients in Nepal stands at 200,000 but doctors say there could be many more hidden cases around. Doctors say the viral disease is the cause of 34 percent of liver cancer cases reported in Nepal. Santosh Man Shrestha, chairman of the Nepal Liver Foundation, says that about 10 percent of those suffering from acute jaundice between 1982-1985 were infected with the Hepatitis B virus. Now the infection rate has gone up to 35 percent. The dangerous disease is difficult to diagnose until it is too late and, like HIV, it spreads through body fluids and contaminated needles, in addition to spreading through contaminated food and water.