In brief...
Hepatitis C and Hepatitis C Virus, HCV, is one of the most recently identified viral infections of the liver. It is usually caught from infected blood products or by sharing injected drugs. Very uncommonly it can be caught during unprotected sex. An infected mother can pass the virus to her unborn child. It is easy for us to test for HCV.
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How did I get it?
You can catch HCV in the same ways that you can catch Hepatitis B Virus, but HBV is more infectious than HCV. HCV is more likely to be spread via infected blood rather than to be caught during sex, you can catch HCV:
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By sharing needles, or other drug-injecting equipment that can be contaminated with blood. This is the most common infection route in the UK.
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By using equipment for tattooing, acupuncture or body-piercing that is contaminated with blood containing HCV. In the UK, most 'professionals' are now careful to avoid 'cross-contamination' and so this is now a rare source of infection. Beware of 'amateurs' though.
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From your mother when you were a baby, if she was infected with HCV when she was pregnant with you, it can cross the placenta or be passed on at birth.
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After receiving a blood transfusion, or another medical product, that was contaminated with HCV. All blood and medical products are now carefully tested for HCV in the UK. This is, however, not the case in some other countries and a few years ago we did not have tests for the virus.
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By having unsafe sex with someone who has HCV.
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Some healthcare workers catch HCV from their HCV-infected patients if they come into contact with infectious blood or other secretions. This is why we are so careful about wearing gloves to protect ourselves and you from infection.
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What are the symptoms?
Most people who have HCV have no symptoms. When symptoms do occur they usually occur many years after infection, but they can occur quite early in some people. Rarely, some people have symptoms that are typical of liver disease including a flu-like illness, tiredness, nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea, weight loss, sometimes jaundice, and itchy skin.
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What tests can you offer at shac?
We can test for HCV using two simple blood tests. One test tells us if you have been exposed to HCV, it looks for antibodies, the other one, which looks for virus RNA, tells us how much virus you have in your body and also if you are still infectious.
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What treatment is available?
About one in five people who have the virus will clear it completely. The majority, however, are likely to remain infected, and infectious, for some time because the immune system is poor at clearing this virus. Such people can develop long-term liver problems and therefore are treated by liver specialists.
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