Backgrounder

Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a chronic liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). In Canada, an estimated 242,500 individuals are infected with hepatitis C and, because there are often no symptoms, nearly 20% of those individuals don't know they are infected and remain undiagnosed. It is estimated that nearly 8,000 were newly infected individuals in Canada in 2007. Many people newly infected with hepatitis C have no symptoms and are unaware of their infection, but they are still infectious.

Initial, or acute, infection with HCV usually shows no symptoms, with less than a quarter of those infected showing symptoms like jaundice (yellowing of the skin and/or eyes) or fatigue. Some individuals will recover from their infection, but 75-85 per cent of those infected will progress to the chronic (carrier) states. Chronic hepatitis C has a silent nature and can remain asymptomatic for decades, but can eventually lead to liver damage, liver cancer and the need for liver transplantation. 

HCV is spread through contact with infected blood.  While many people became infected through blood and blood products in the past, between 70 and 80 per cent of HCV transmission in Canada today is due to injection drug-use and sharing of contaminated needles and other drug-using paraphernalia (e.g., straws, pipes, spoons, cookers, etc.).

The most common risk factors for HCV infection include:

• Injection drug-use (past and/or present) and intranasal drug-use (snorting) when sharing contaminated drug-using equipment (e.g., needles, straws, pipes, spoons, cookers, etc.);
• Tattooing, body piercing or acupuncture when unsterile equipment or techniques are used;
• Exposure in the workplace by getting pricked by a needle or sharp equipment that has infected blood on it;
• Exposure, both within and outside Canada, when infection control precautions are not observed and/or during medical or dental procedures that involve the use of contaminated equipment;
• Sharing personal care articles such as razors, scissors, nail clippers or toothbrushes with an infected person;
• Unprotected sexual activity that includes contact with blood or an exchange of blood with an infected person; and
• Being born to a mother with HCV.

Persons who were exposed to contaminated blood, blood products or organ transplantation prior to 1992 may also be at risk.

There are medications available to treat HCV and treatment can help to protect from serious liver damage. Early diagnosis is crucial because the sooner treatment is started, the better the chance that it may help to clear the virus. Treatment can also help to lessen damage to the liver and can prevent individuals from spreading the virus to others unknowingly.
For more information about HCV, visit www.publichealth.gc.ca/hepatitisc.

About the renewed Hepatitis C Prevention, Support and Research Program

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) will spearhead this initiative and work closely with community and provincial/territorial partners to implement a renewed Hepatitis C Prevention, Support and Research Program, which will focus on research and surveillance; care and awareness; prevention; and community-based support initiatives.

The renewed Hepatitis C Prevention, Support and Research Program is national
in scope and works with PHAC’s six regional offices and with Health Canada’s Northern Region office to deliver community-based interventions. The program’s overarching goal is to improve population health, decrease health disparities and reduce the associated burden on the health system.

The continuing funding of $10.65 million annually will go towards contributions to community-based initiatives that address hepatitis C virus (HCV) and the program objectives of:

• Contributing to the prevention of HCV;
• Supporting persons infected with, affected by, at risk of and/or vulnerable to HCV;
• Providing a stronger evidence base for policy and programming decisions;
• Addressing the risks associated with certain behaviours; and,
• Addressing issues of co-infection with related sexually-transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) and tuberculosis (TB), common risk factors, and population health approaches to disease prevention and control.