What happens to someone infected with hepatitis C virus?
Once hepatitis C virus has infected someone s liver, there are several possible outcomes: (1) Some fortunate people eliminate the virus from their body and never have any further problems with the virus. This happens about 10-15% of the time. (2) Some individuals have life-long infection with the virus, but do not develop significant liver inflammation or any symptoms. In these people, hepatitis C virus may not lead to long-term liver problems. (3) Some people develop inflammation of the liver caused by the immune system s reaction to the virus. This illness is called chronic hepatitis C and can be completely silent for many years and not cause any symptoms. But in some individuals, hepatitis C virus infection can cause symptoms, particularly tiredness and a sense of feeling poorly. Rarely, immune-system reactions to the hepatitis C virus can lead to medical problems outside the liver, for example, skin ulcers and kidney disease. (4) Over the course of many years, some individuals who
