Chronic Hepatitis C (also known Hep C or HCV) infection is an important cause of advanced liver disease and liver cancer. It is caused by a virus. The most common source of the virus is from the exchange of blood or bodily fluids from an infected person.
At the end of 2020, an estimated 117,810 people were living with chronic HCV in Australia with 90,560 (77%) diagnosed
Like most liver diseases, Hepatitis C usually progresses in different stages. Progression usually occurs with ongoing inflammation. A proportion of patients will develop liver cancer, cirrhosis and end stage liver disease.
About 20%–30% of people with chronic HCV infection will develop cirrhosis, generally after 20–30 years of infection
Hepatitis C is treatable. A combination of physical examination, blood tests, Fibroscan and imaging is used to determine the stage of the disease. Fibroscan can help provide information about liver fat content (steatosis) and degree of scarring (fibrosis).
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