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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Body Shop founder has Hepatitis C | Body Shop founder has Hepatitis C |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Body Shop founder Dame Anita Roddick has said she has Hepatitis C. | Body Shop founder Dame Anita Roddick has said she has Hepatitis C. |
| Dame Anita, 64, said she also has cirrhosis of the liver, one of the long-term effects of the disease. | Dame Anita, 64, said she also has cirrhosis of the liver, one of the long-term effects of the disease. |
| The multi-millionaire contracted the disease through a blood transfusion while giving birth to her youngest daughter, Sam, in 1971. | The multi-millionaire contracted the disease through a blood transfusion while giving birth to her youngest daughter, Sam, in 1971. |
| She said: "I have Hepatitis C. It's a bit of a bummer... I had no idea I had this virus. I was having routine blood tests when it showed up." | She said: "I have Hepatitis C. It's a bit of a bummer... I had no idea I had this virus. I was having routine blood tests when it showed up." |
| In a statement posted on her website, she added: "What I can say is that having Hep C means that I live with a sharp sense of my own mortality, which in many ways makes life more vivid and immediate. | In a statement posted on her website, she added: "What I can say is that having Hep C means that I live with a sharp sense of my own mortality, which in many ways makes life more vivid and immediate. |
| I want to blow the whistle on the fact that Hep C must be taken seriously as a public health challenge Anita Roddick What is Hepatitis C? | I want to blow the whistle on the fact that Hep C must be taken seriously as a public health challenge Anita Roddick What is Hepatitis C? |
| "It makes me even more determined to just get on with things." | "It makes me even more determined to just get on with things." |
| Dame Anita has just become a patron of the Hepatitis C Trust, the only UK charity devoted to the virus. | Dame Anita has just become a patron of the Hepatitis C Trust, the only UK charity devoted to the virus. |
| She turned to the charity for information and help when she was diagnosed with the disease two years ago. | |
| Dame Anita called for greater public awareness and better funding for the disease. It is often known as the 'silent killer', because people with the disease may show no symptoms initially. | |
| She said: "Well, I've always been a bit of a `whistleblower' and I'm not going to stop now. | She said: "Well, I've always been a bit of a `whistleblower' and I'm not going to stop now. |
| "I want to blow the whistle on the fact that Hep C must be taken seriously as a public health challenge and must get the attention and resources that it needs." | "I want to blow the whistle on the fact that Hep C must be taken seriously as a public health challenge and must get the attention and resources that it needs." |
| Stomach pain | Stomach pain |
| The virus is transmitted by infected body fluids and people who share needles are particularly at risk. | The virus is transmitted by infected body fluids and people who share needles are particularly at risk. |
| Dame Anita said it was especially important for people over 50 and anyone who had had a transfusion before 1991 - when the NHS started to test donated blood for the virus - to come forward for testing. | Dame Anita said it was especially important for people over 50 and anyone who had had a transfusion before 1991 - when the NHS started to test donated blood for the virus - to come forward for testing. |
| Professor William Rosenberg, of the University of Southampton, said 90% of people carrying the virus have not been diagnosed. | Professor William Rosenberg, of the University of Southampton, said 90% of people carrying the virus have not been diagnosed. |
| He said one of the problems was that it causes general symptoms including stomach pain, feelings of being unwell and poor concentration. | He said one of the problems was that it causes general symptoms including stomach pain, feelings of being unwell and poor concentration. |
| No vaccine exists to prevent Hepatitis C infection, but treatments are available which are effective in more than half of cases. | No vaccine exists to prevent Hepatitis C infection, but treatments are available which are effective in more than half of cases. |
| Dame Anita set up the first Body Shop in Brighton in 1976. It became part of the French company L'Oreal Group in July last year but is run independently. | Dame Anita set up the first Body Shop in Brighton in 1976. It became part of the French company L'Oreal Group in July last year but is run independently. |