Hepatitis is the Latin word for liver inflammation. Type C hepatitis is caused by a virus called hepatitis C virus. It was previously referred to as non-A-non-B hepatitis. Other types of viral hepatitis include hepatitis A, and hepatitis B.

The incubation period, from the time of exposure to the virus until the onset of the disease, is one to six months. Early symptoms include poor appetite, lack of interest in food, nausea, aching muscles and joints, and light fever.

Later symptoms include yellowing of skin, mucous membranes, and white portions of the eyes (jaundice, icterus); light-coloured stools; and dark urine. Once the late symptoms have developed, in most cases the patient quickly begins to get better. The disease typically lasts two to eight weeks.

Only 1 in 10 patients with acute hepatitis has symptoms. The remaining nine have no symptoms whatsoever. In 8 out of 10 patients, the infection becomes chronic. Patients with chronic type C hepatitis may not have any symptoms at all or experience only mild symptoms such as tiredness, periodical pressure below the right ribs caused by the enlarging liver, and aching muscles and joints. Approximately one third of the patients develop cirrhosis over a number of years, which can lead to liver failure and other serious complications. On average, cirrhosis develops about 20 years after the virus has been contracted.