Hornsey Journal - A SCULPTOR left feeling "suicidal" as hepatitis C ravaged his body for almost 40 years without him knowing is leading a campaign to increase awareness of the potentially deadly disease.
John Porter-Weiss, 55, of Tower Gardens Road, Tottenham, thought he was a hypochondriac for pestering doctors about problems ranging from depression to 'flu.
But unknown to him he had been suffering from hepatitis C, which he believes he contracted during his teens sharing needles while injecting barbiturates.
After being diagnosed in 2003, Mr Porter-Weiss wants to help other victims to take action earlier. He said: "When I left school I got involved in drugs and was doing it every day for a matter of months. I made mistakes, but it was a lifetime ago and I thought nothing would come of it."
He was persuaded by his son to get tested because he was suffering from persistent colds and would occasionally fall into serious bouts of depression.
The drugs he was made to take during the 11-month treatment process made him feel like he was "mentally ill", but when he was eventually taken off them he said he began to feel like "a different person".
The treatment was successful and it is unlikely he will suffer a relapse.
Now an ambassador for the Department of Health's Get Tested Get Treated campaign, he is keen to highlight the dangers to others.
It is thought 15 per cent of people in the UK have the disease, which is contracted through the exchange of even the smallest amount of contaminated blood, but do not know it.
Mr Porter-Weiss said: "I have known many friends die from the disease. It made me angry when I realised there was no awareness."
