Q&A: could I catch hepatitis C?

How easy is it to catch hepatitis C from a partner who is carrying the virus? I have just heard that an ex of mine has it

Dr Mark Porter
How easy is it to catch hepatitis C from a partner who is carrying the virus? I have just heard that a past boyfriend of mine is awaiting a liver transplant because of the infection, which he probably picked up when he dabbled with drugs at university. That was more than 15 years ago, but I am now worried that he may have had the virus when we were together and passed it on to me.

Hepatitis C is an infection that was first identified in 1989. Some people will eliminate the virus without any trouble, but most develop a slow-burning, chronic infection that, in as many as one in five people, can lead to serious liver disease some 20 years later.

Hep C is blood borne and the most common route of transmission in the UK is sharing dirty needles and syringes. There is also a risk to anyone who received a blood transfusion before routine screening was introduced in 1991, or blood products (as used to treat people with haemophilia) before 1986.

In theory the virus can be spread during any activity where blood may come into contact with cuts or a nick in the skin but sexual transmission is quite uncommon. Studies suggest that fewer than one in twenty regular sexual partners of people with Hep C become infected themselves: good odds for you.

Screening involves a simple blood test and if you turn out to have the virus, there are treatments that can clear the infection in around half of cases, but the earlier this is done the better. Visit www.nhs.uk/hepc for more details.