Hepatitis C infection is caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Worldwide, about 170 million people have Hep C. In Canada, about 250,000 people are living with Hep C with 110,000 in Ontario. Roughly one in three people don’t know they have the virus. There are other kinds of hepatitis caused by viruses, like Hepatitis B (See Hep A, B, and C for more information).
You can get Hep C when blood containing the hepatitis C virus gets in your blood. The highest-risk activity for getting Hep C is using drug preparation and injection equipment—needles, syringes, swabs, filters, spoons and water—that has been used by someone else. (See Staying Safe for information on how to prevent Hep C.)
The hepatitis C virus attacks your liver. Your body can try to fight the virus—and sometimes it can win—but the hepatitis C virus is very strong. Ordinary medicines like antibiotics do not kill viruses.
Stages
There are two stages of hepatitis C infection:
1. Acute infection
The first is the “acute” infection stage, which happens when people are first infected and can last from a few weeks to six months.
2. Chronic infection
The next stage for many people is long-term or “chronic” infection, which happens when a person has had Hep C for six months or more. Chronic infection is most concerning because even though a person may not feel sick, the Hep C virus can be damaging their liver.
Let’s say ten people have become infected with the hepatitis C virus. Two of the ten will recover from the infection or “clear” the virus during the acute phase. That means their body fought the hepatitis C virus and won.
The other eight people will go on to develop chronic Hep C (the hepatitis C virus is in their blood and liver more than six months after infection). It can take as long as 20 to 30 years for the virus to cause serious liver disease or damage. In many cases, Hep C can be treated with medicine designed to fight the hepatitis C virus. (See Treatment for more information on treatment and drugs to fight Hep C.)
Of those eight people with chronic infection, one or two will have enough damage to their liver over the years that it will become scarred. The liver will not work as well as it should. This is called cirrhosis. If the disease continues to get worse, people can also get liver cancer or liver failure.
Genotype
There are six different types, or strains, of the hepatitis C virus. They are called genotypes. The particular genotype a person has will affect treatment decisions.
The hepatitis C virus is tough and some experts say that it can live for up to four (and maybe more) days outside the body. Therefore, take care not to come in contact with personal belongings or equipment that might have blood on them, even if you can’t see the blood.
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