any way to tell how long one has had Hep C

Does anyone know if there is any way to tell how long one has had HepC? (I'm questioning my original doctor as he vanished, will be seeing new doc soon).  Does everyone handle this disease's progression differently (I assume so).  I probably will never know, but am searching to try and discover when I actually picked this disease up, and if I never find the source, I can live with that, but it would be nice to know the time frame when contracted.   I've been on tx 6 weeks now and some days things make sense, and on other days, nothing makes sense.  I am one of the people who found this thru routine blood work - no symptoms of any kind - I actually felt good.

[nygirl7]

Usually the best indicactor of how long you have had it is a liver biopsy.  Unfortunately though even that can be really questionable.

Liver damage from what I understand is not a lateral type progression meaning it doesn't go evenly.  We could take 25 years to get to stage 2 and then all of a sudden go to stage 4 in five years.

But generally when you examine the possibilities that exist for where you may have gotten it - it does line up with the biopsy results.


I drove myself crazy in the beginning trying to determine where exactly I'd gotten it and then I realized it didn't matter at all...the only important thing was finding out that I DID so I could treat it.

[Kalio1]

That is the billion dollar question. The disease is nonlinear so there is no way to know. The way you got it can also contribute to disease severity, your lifestyle habits, weight, age all can contribute too.
Your own immune system's ability to battle it is a big factor.
You can go nuts trying to figure it out and still be wrong.
The medical/dental community is very defensive about it but clinical settings are obviously a problem. I read another article recently where they are saying more attention should be paid to clinical settings being responsible for exposures. Obviously such a durable virus that can't be killed with liquid cleaning agents (or even BLEACH) and can live for DAYS dried out is a big problem that needs to be addressed. Universal precautions do not have the capacity to kill this virus or contain it. ONLY heat can kill it. They do not use HEAT to disinfect surgical arenas, therefore it is clearly a pathway of possible infection.
Just read any doctor's or dentist's blog where they DO discuss the unbelievable infection rates of HEP C within their own communities. It is very hush hush because a doctor or dentist with this disease does NOT want the patients to be aware of that fact because it would kill their business but the rates are VERY high of doctors and surgeons who have this disease.
What "they" need to do is WARN ALL about the risks and that the risk of HEP C infection DOES exist for anyone having ANY kind of procedure done in a clinical setting. They should initiate universal testing procedures so the majority of people who have this illness at least KNOW they have it. It is a sad commentary on govt. regulation that most people find out they have this illness by suprise.  They know it is a "silent killer" disease and won't signal the patient there is an issue, so universal testing is the ONLY way to warn people that they carry the virus.

[mikesimon]

No, once it gets into the chronic stage there is no way to tell except possibly one's history, that is. Mike

[APKhaos]

Its fairly easy if the infection drives a case of acute hepatitis first, then subsides into the chronic state. I had a rough bout of acute hep just after an emergency appendectomy in 1974. Back then, there were only HepA or infectious hep, and HepB or serum hep. Mine was diagnosed and treated as HepA, and cleared in a few weeks.

Fast forward to 2005 when I was diagnosed with HCV, there were no antibodies to HVA or HVB. Looks like it was HCV from the original acute case shortly after the original infection.

[Kalio1]

So how is post tx going??
Hope you are doing well.

[wyntre9]

"Just read any doctor's or dentist's blog where they DO discuss the unbelievable infection rates of HEP C within their own communities."

Can you post the links?  I'd be very interested in reading them.

[wyntre9]

That's an interesting question, Lilla.

What I'm REALLY curious about is whether there's a MINIMUM time after infection that the non-acute form of virus can show up in the blood.

And on another note, is the strain that causes CHRONIC hep-c the same as the one that causes ACUTE hep-c?

One more, are there more than one type of Hep-C virus?  What I mean, is, if there's only one strain, then why are there so many different genotypes?

What causes one person to have genotype 2B and another 1A?

I'll stop, now.  :)

[traveler65]

When you got it really does not matter. Finding out you have it is whats important. I get a kick out of so many that say "I got it 31 yrs 7 months ago" as they may have had a risk factor at that time. But, unless you have an attack of acute hepatitis you really don't know, and could have picked it up just 10 years ago. This may account for some of the differences in liver damage from people who think they got it at the same time. The good news about knowing that you have it is that you will be less likely to pass it on to someone else. That's what really matters.

[APKhaos]

Hi there, K. The news is all good.

I'm UND at 8 weeks post tx, and pln is happily in the same boat. We both were in the same trial arm - 12 weeks of VX + SOC followed by 12 weeks of SOC alone. Too early to celebrate, but it looks very promising.

[missy60051]

I too was bothered by this.  You should not beat yourself up.  Just start taking care of the problem.  Here's my ex.  my doc told me he had no way of knowing how long I had this for.  The next visit I questioned him based on his experience and to give me a estimated guess.  Now remember all I know is I'm not in cirrhosis  but there is 50% damage to my liver and of course scar tissue.  I ask is this something that could have happened to me in the last 3 years.  absolutely not.  He gave an estimate of 20 to 15 yrs ago.  It was a tattoo.  There just is no other explanation.  

[NicksmyName]

very difficult unless you can trace back to single exposure like a blood transfusion.  Unfortunately different people prgresss to fibrosis at different rates and some do not progress at all so biopsy result wont pin point the time of infection.