10 Things I Wish People Knew About Hepatitis C

Here are 10 things that I wish people knew about hepatitis C...

Hepatitis C is totally preventable.

It is only transmitted through blood to blood contact. By using safe practices, you can avoid the spread of HCV to others. Do not share personal care items that could have blood on them, such as razors. Avoid IV drug use. If you use drugs, do not share drug equipment.

The symptoms of hepatitis C are often invisible.

A person with the virus may look just fine on the outside. It can take decades for the outward appearance to change. Eventually there can be yellowing of the skin and eyes, swelling, brittle hair and nails, and other signs. There may be no signs at all. It wasn't until my liver failed that I was diagnosed. HCV is labeled the “Silent Killer” because without testing, a person may never know they have it.

Hepatitis C is curable.

There are other types of hepatitis, like hepatitis A and B. Many of them have no cure. Scientists have been able to formulate medicine to treat most types of hepatitis C. Unlike some of the other types of hepatitis, this one has a really high cure rate.

Hepatitis C ATTACKS the liver. 

The virus breeds in the human liver, which means that every cell is impacted by it’s presence. The liver stays inflamed and tries to heal itself. The healing process ends up creating further liver damage. The only way to stop the attack is to get rid of the virus.

You can’t get hepatitis C through casual contact.

Hep C is not easily transmitted. Exposure through food service or by touching is next to impossible. There has to be an open wound touching open wound. It can also be spread through procedures using needles or other instruments, like tattoos.

It doesn’t matter how you get it.

Your body doesn’t care how you got it. It needs healing. Whether it was through a medical procedure, tattooing, or drug injection, who cares? What does matter is that you get tested and treated.

People with hepatitis C have to be fakers.

They tire easily. Their body gets a lot of aches and fatigue. They learn to fake their way through a day. Since they wake up tired and go to sleep tired, they know to just keep going or they would never get out of bed.

There are millions of Americans living with the hepatitis C virus.

There are more people infected with hepatitis C than ever. If you take all of the other infectious diseases and added them together, including HIV, the number of people living with hepatitis C would still be higher.

Thousands of people die from hepatitis C related diseases.

In spite of the fact that there is a cure, many people are dying from liver disease, or other factors caused by the virus. Testing and treatment could reduce that number.

The whole body can heal after treatment.

The moment the virus is undetected in the bloodstream, the body sends out healing signals. The liver, kidneys, spleen, and heart all get a break. In many cases, blood liver enzymes return to a normal range very quickly. This can even happen before treatment is completed.