Living with hepatitis C: from self-loathing to advocacy. Compassion for those with hepatitis C and accurate information about preventing its transmission will also benefit the wider community.

Hepatitis C Council of Australia, Darlinghurst, NSW. Lisa Waller, BA, President. Reprints will not be available from the author. Correspondence: Ms Lisa Waller, Hepatitis C Council of Australia, PO Box 432, Darlinghurst, NSW 1300. [email protected] The Medical Journal of Australia ISSN: 0025-729X 15 March 2004 180 6 293-294 ©The Medical Journal of Australia 2004 www.mja.com.au Personal Perspective to feel like a leper because I was sick, but that’s my story and unfortunately it’s a fairly common one among peopl living with hepatitis C (HCV).1 Discrimination agains people who are HCV-positive is not confined to healthcar settings, but thi is where it is most often reported,2 partl because it’s the context in which affected people are mos Compassion for those with hepatitis C and accurate information about preventing its transmission will also benefit the wider community