Silently, Laura, akes her way to the refrigerator, knowing she needs to take her medication. Hoping this medicine reurion and inferon will help her disease, Hepatitis C, she prays and waits for the results. Each year, 150,000 new cases of Hepatitis C are discovered in the United States (Brown. et.al., 1998). What is Hepatitis C? Where do people become infected with the virus? How is the virus cured? There are so many questions asked from people each day, and the researchers still don't have all the anwsers.
             Hepatitis is a disease of the liver that is caused by one of the tinest types of "bugs", or microorganism, that can infect humans: a virus. Viruses are made up of a compact string of genes ( genes carry the coded information telling our cells what to do) in a coat of protein (Brown. et.al.,1998). Viruses carry blueprints so the virus can make many more copies of the cell. The virus reproduces by invading living cells. Once inside the cell, it uses the cell to produce more virus with the cells normal functions. Virus cells aren't able to enter all cells. For example, the Hepatitis virus mainly effects liver cells. Once the virus is inside the liver, it weakens and you start to feel the horrible symptoms.
             Hepatitis C is caused by the hepatitis C virus, which is also a ball shaped capsule containing the vital genes that invade the liver (Cooper, 1996). The virus can cause scarring of the liver (cirrhosis) as well as an increase chance of liver cancer and even liver failure. The hepatitis C if the leading cause of liver trasplants in the United States. As the virus enters your liver, it begins to invade the cells and grow. As it does so, increasing numbers of the cells are scarred and damaged. The victim may not feel any symptoms, until so much damge takes place, your liver will no longer function. This can take ten to fourty years, depending on the speed at which the disease progresses and how well you take ca...