Unfortunately, Hepatitis C infection has long term consequences. Although the vast majority of patients have either no symptoms, or very minor symptoms, long term exposure to the virus can have very serious consequences.

Approximately one in three untreated patients will progress to liver failure or liver cancer. Prediction of those to whom this applies is not possible at present. It is known that certain factors such as age, length of infection, and virus genotype have a bearing on the final outcome, but knowledge is not sufficiently advanced, as yet, to be able to predict those who will progress to this stage.

The general approach from the medical profession is that all patients should, where possible, be treated to prevent progression of the disease, until such time as accurate predictions can be made of each individual patient's long term prognosis.