Chronic hepatitis B is a serious, debilitating illness that can cause cirrhosis of the liver, liver cancer and death. Chronic hepatitis B is the main cause of liver cancer and the tenth leading cause of death worldwide.Most people fight off the infection themselves, but approximately 5-10 percent of those infected with the virus become carriers, and an additional 5-10 percent of those infected each year will progress to chronic liver disease, cirrhosis and possibly liver cancer.