The NHS is urging Brits to order a test for Hepatitis C to ensure that they don’t have it.
According to the NHS website, Hepatitis C is a virus that can infect the liver. If left untreated, it can sometimes cause serious and potentially life-threatening damage to the liver over many years.
But with modern treatments, it’s usually possible to cure the infection, and most people with it will have a normal life expectancy. It’s estimated that around 118,000 people in the UK had chronic hepatitis C in 2019.
You can become infected with it if you come into contact with the blood of an infected person.
“Lots of people have hepatitis C without knowing it. If untreated, it can damage your liver and can sometimes lead to life-threatening conditions,” the NHS in an Instagram post on its official page.
The post continued: “If you’re worried you may be at risk of hepatitis C, you can order a free and confidential test online.
“Search ‘hep C test NHS’ to find out more information and order a test”.
What are the symptoms of Hepatitis C?
Hepatitis C often does not have any noticeable symptoms until the liver has been significantly damaged.
This means many people have the infection without realising it.
When symptoms do occur, they can be mistaken for another condition.
Symptoms can include:
Flu-like symptoms, such as muscle aches and a high temperature (fever)
Feeling tired all the time
Loss of appetite
Stomach ache
Feeling and being sick
The only way to know for certain if these symptoms are caused by hepatitis C is to get tested.
How do you get it?
The hepatitis C virus is usually spread through blood-to-blood contact.
Some ways the infection can be spread include:
Sharing unsterilised needles – particularly needles used to inject recreational drugs
Sharing razors or toothbrushes
From a pregnant woman to her unborn baby
Through unprotected sex, although this is very rare
In the UK, most hepatitis C infections happen in people who inject drugs or have injected them in the past.
It’s estimated that around half of those who inject drugs have been infected with the virus.
How do you get tested for Hepatitis C?
Seek medical advice if you have persistent symptoms of hepatitis C or there’s a risk you’re infected, even if you do not have any symptoms.
A blood test can be carried out to see if you have the infection. You can do a finger-prick test at home to find out if you have hepatitis C, which the NHS recommends in their Instagram post.
GPs, sexual health clinics, genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics, or drug treatment services also offer testing for hepatitis C.
Early diagnosis and treatment can help prevent or limit any damage to your liver, as well as help ensure the infection is not passed on to other people.
Hepatitis C can be treated with medicines that stop the virus from multiplying inside the body. These usually need to be taken for several weeks.