Chronic Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). The word hepatitis simply means inflammation of the liver. Because Hepatitis C often has no symptoms, many people do not know they have the disease and may be infecting others. There are several different kinds of viral hepatitis. In each case, the virus, once inside the body, begins to multiply in the liver cells, interferes with the normal activity of these cells, and then uses the cells' inner machinery to make more copies of the virus which then infect other healthy cells.

Approximately 200,000 people in Australia are estimated to be living with chronic HCV infection*.

Hepatitis C is spread primarily from person to person through exposure to infected blood. The majority of new infections are acquired through sharing equipment used for injecting drugs. In 75% of new infections, the infection persists for life (known as a chronic infection) unless successfully treated and slowly damages the liver. Chronic hepatitis C can have serious consequences, including liver cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, and even liver cancer.

Currently, chronic hepatitis C is usually treated with medications known as combination therapy. Combination therapy is successful in treating some people with hepatitis C. Chronic hepatitis C can be a serious disease if left untreated, but with early diagnosis and intervention, combination therapy generally has higher success rates.

* Ministerial Advisory Committee on AIDS, Sexual Health and Hepatitis C Sub-Committee. Hepatitis C Virus Projections Working Group: Estimates and Projections of the Hepatitis C Virus Epidemic in Australia 2006. (accessed 29 May 2009).