Yes...since you have the antibodies it means at some point you were exposed to the virus. Your body either fought it off on its own or you have a chronic infection. The PCR will confirm this.
Sure...it could be a false positive. That will have to be confirmed either by another ab test or the PCR.
There is no way to tell how long you've had it by the antibodies or PCR.
But what does it mean? If I'm not mistaken I got the antibodies which states that I HAD the virus from before or I have it now. However it may be a false positive. Is there no way to tell if I had it for a long or short time based on the level of antibodies?
Also, thank you for your quick reply.
The positive ab test doesn't mean you are sick. You will need to have an HCV PCR test to confirm if you have a chronic infection. Some people are exposed to HCV but there body fights it off on its own. The PCR tests for the actual virus.