HEPATITIS C: The Stealth Virus
Hepatitis C is a virus, or infection, that causes liver disease and inflammation of the liver. Acute hepatitis C is a short term infection lasting approximately 6 months and sometimes clears up because your body is able to fight off the infection and get rid of the virus. Chronic hepatitis C, however, is a long lasting infection and occurs when the body can't get rid of the virus. Most hepatitis C infections become chronic. Without treatment, chronic hepatitis C can cause liver cancer or severe liver damage that leads to liver failure. A liver transplant may be necessary if chronic hepatitis causes severe liver damage (end-stage liver disease) that leads to liver failure. There are six strains (Genotypes) of the hepatitis C virus. Genotype 1 is the most common strain in the United States. Knowing the genotype may help a doctor choose the best treatment plan. Some call Hepatitis C the "Stealth Virus" because it is a slow acting virus and most people have no symptoms and don't realize that they have hepatitis until liver damage manifests itself, sometimes, decades later. That was my case, by the time I was diagnosed with hepatitis C I was at the point of end-stage liver disease. The virus had just about destroyed my liver. Although I do not know, and most never know, exactly how I contracted the virus, my doctor said that the amount of damage to my liver indicated that the virus could have been contracted 25 or 30 years before I was diagnosed with it. The fact that there are no symptoms until serious damage has occurred makes this a very dangerous and, sometimes, deadly virus. Unfortunately I did not discover my hep C until it was too late and only a liver transplant would save my life. I was fortunate to not only have received a liver transplant, but to, subsequently, have successfully completed the 12 week treatment program for hepatitis C, which included a regimen of Harvoni and Ribavirin. It was a hellish 12 weeks, but to be cured of that deadly disease was worth the temporary suffering. The downside of this new treatment is that it is very expensive, making it unavailable to many. The following links provide more detailed information about the hepatitis virus.
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