The Nobel Prize Is a Reminder of Hepatitis C’s Dark History

Charting the virus’ map of destruction

Cirrhosis of the liver with hepatic steatosis and chronic hepatitis. Image: OGphoto/Getty Images

Yesterday, three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus. The discovery led to a curative treatment for the widespread, fatal virus, which infects somewhere between 71 million and 170 million people worldwide. This chronic disease…