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Hepatitis C Information

In this section, you can learn about the following topics:

What are the causes of hepatitis C?

Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). The disease affects about 4.1 million1 people in the United States and about 170 million people worldwide2, making it much more common than HIV infection in both the US3 and around the globe4. Because hepatitis C often has no symptoms, many people do not know they have the disease and may be infecting others.5 Watch 'What is Hepatitis C' Video You may want to watch our video "What is Hepatitis C".

Leading Cause of Liver Disease. In fact, hepatitis C is now the leading cause of liver disease in the United States and the number one reason for liver transplantation.6 The number of people with chronic HCV infection is expected to increase fourfold from 1990-2015.7 Each year, about 10,000 to 12,000 people die from the disease.8

The virus enters the liver cells and uses their inner genetic machinery to make copies of itself. Those copies then infect more cells, and the cycle repeats. In 15-25% of cases, the infection is acute, meaning it is cleared spontaneously by the body and there are no long-term consequences. Unfortunately, about 75-85% of the time, the infection becomes chronic and slowly damages the liver over many years.9

Over time, this liver damage can lead to serious consequences, including cirrhosis (or scarring) of the liver, liver failure and some types of liver cancer.8

How is hepatitis C spread?

Hepatitis C is primarily spread through exposure to HCV-infected blood, which may occur through intravenous drug use, blood or blood product transfusions, tattooing with contaminated needles/ink, infected hemodialysis equipment, needlestick injuries, high-risk sexual behavior, or other routes. Roughly 10% of people with hepatitis C never find out how they got the disease.10

What are some of the symptoms of hepatitis C?

People with hepatitis C infection usually do not have characteristic disease symptoms. Unlike other forms of viral hepatitis, jaundice — a yellowing of the skin and eyes from a buildup of bilirubin in blood and tissue — may not appear initially, until a person develops cirrhosis, or scarring, of the liver.8 When symptoms do appear, they may be vague and include tiredness, stomach pain, and rash. Because HCV infection often has no symptoms, many people do not know they have hepatitis C and may be infecting others. The only way to know if you have it is to get a blood test for hepatitis C.

How do I get tested for get hepatitis C?

Blood or saliva can be tested to determine if a person is infected with the hepatitis C virus. Watch 'Getting Tested for hepatitis C' Video You may want to watch our video "Getting Tested for Hepatitis C".

What treatment options exist for hepatitis C?

The good news is that hepatitis C is treatable with currently available treatments. Watch 'Getting Treated for hepatitis C' Video You may want to watch our video "Getting Treated for Hepatitis C".

You can turn to The Be In Charge® Program for a vast amount of additional information and support as you manage your hepatitis C treatment. Sign up now for this tremendous support tool.

  1. Armstrong, G. L., Wasley, A., Simard, E.P., et al. The Prevalence of Hepatitis C Virus Infection in the United States, 1999 through 2002. Annals of Internal Medicine. 16 May, 2006. 144: 705-714. Available at: http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/144/10/705 Accessed January 14, 2009.
  2. Afdhal, N.H. The Natural History of Hepatitis C. Seminars in Liver Disease. 2004. 24 (2): 3-8.
  3. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV/AIDS Basic Statistics. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/basic.htm#aidscases.
    Accessed January 14, 2009.
  4. Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. 2008 Report on the globa AIDS epidemic: Executive summary. Available at: http://data.unaids.org/pub/GlobalReport/2008/JC1511....
    Accessed January 13, 2009.
  5. CDC. CDC Wonder, Hepatitis C Prevention. Available at: http://wonder.cdc.gov/wonder/prevguid/p0000004/p0000004.asp.
    Accessed October 16, 2007.
  6. CDC. Viral Hepatitis C. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hepatitis/c/plan/HCV_infection.htm.
    Accessed October 16, 2007.
  7. Armstrong, GL, Alter, MJ, McQuillan, GM et al. The Past Incidence of Hepatitis C Virus Infection: Implications for the Future Burden of Chronic Liver Disease in the United States. Hepatology. March, 2000. 31(3): 777-782.
  8. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC). Cronic Hepatitis C: Current Disease Management. Available at: http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/chronichepc/. Accessed January 8, 2009.
  9. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Hepatitis C: FAQs for Health Professionals. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HCV/HCVfaq.htm#section1 .
    Accessed January 9, 2009.
  10. Jancin J. Hepatitis C virus may be spread through saliva: avoid toothbrush sharing - Clinical Rounds. OB/GYN News. 2003 Nov. Available at: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0CYD/is_21_38/ai_110804600.
    Accessed November 7, 2007.