What is the Hepatitis C Antibody Test

The Hep C Antibody Test

Can A Positive Hep C Test Be Wrong

Hi Greg,

Long time no see, I hope you are doing well. And even though I feel well pretty much good most of the time, I recently had a test done (for the first time since taking the meds) and unfortunately I am still positive. Long story short, I would like to order as soon as possible…

Sincerely yours, Ivan 

My Reply

Just about every day, sometimes twice a day, I get emails like the one above, from people who have done Hepatitis C treatment and then get a Hepatitis C Antibody test that shows a POSITIVE result and they think their Hep C treatment has failed and that they still have Hepatitis C infection.

A positive result from a HCV antibody test does not prove that you have a Hep C infection. If you test positive for Hep C antibodies and have never been treated for Hep C there is about a 75% chance that you have Hepatitis C.

But if you have previously been treated for Hep C a Hep C antibody test is a total waste of time because you will always test positive for Hep C antibodies.

What are Hep C Antibodies?

Hepatitis C Antibodies are proteins created by your own body’s immune system to fight the the Hepatitis C virus.

Hep C antibodies a designed to attach to the surface of Hep C virus and block the ability of the Hep C virus to replicate itself inside your liver. Hep C antibodies fight the Hepatitis C virus and in about 25% of cases they are successful and the Hep C virus is  destroyed and you do not go on to develop chronic Hepatitis C.

This always happens in the acute phase of a Hep C infection, that is within the first 6 months from when the virus entered your body. If your immune system can not defeat the virus within the first 6 months, in the acute phase, its defence has been unsuccessful and the virus will remain active in your body until a pharmaceutical intervention removes it (or you die).

However even after the virus is removed, either by your own immune system or by treatment with Hep C drugs, the antibodies will remain in your blood. You will always have Hepatitis C antibodies in your blood.

So a Hepatitis C Antibody test after you have had a successful Hepatitis C treatment is a total waste of time because you will always test positive for Hep C antibodies.

For more information about Hep C antibodies click this link

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