30/9/2007 Nurse who was accidentally infected with hepatitis C talks about its impact
By Heather Darlington - thisislocallondon.co.uk
It is known as the silent killer and was thought of as something only drug users get until Anita Roddick spoke out about the condition. But for 200,000 people in the UK, hepatitis C is a grim reality. It is also a reality that Eileen Rendle faces everyday since her diagnosis in 1995.
The Royal Marsden Cancer Nurse was infected while taking blood from a patient in 1987. The 62-year-old from Sutton only discovered she had the condition when she had another injury in 1995 and doctors insisted she took a test.
"I had been doing a night shift and was tired," she recalls. "I had taken blood from a leukaemia patient and because their platelets are so low, when I removed the needle the blood poured everywhere.
"I asked him to hold his arm, but he spoke little English and didn't understand."
Distracted, Eileen flicked the needle into a bin, but as it left her hand it stabbed into her finger.
In that one moment, that one small accident, things changed and Eileen became hepatitis C positive.
After her diagnosis, she waited a year before telling anyone - even her closest friends. She says she felt contaminated and dirty. But when she finally did, she was encouraged by people's understanding reaction. Now, Eileen refuses to hide her condition and is happy to speak out if it helps raise awareness and dispel myths. Drawing strength from her work, she copes by maintaining a positive attitude and healthy lifestyle.
"People always ask me if I'm angry," she says. "But I have no one to be angry at. It was an accident and I have never let it rule my life. You can't dwell on it, and have to move on. In my job you see people in a lot worse positions than I am, so I can't feel sorry for myself."
But that is not to say there have not been hard times, and even now she says she struggles to keep her energy levels up during the day.
In 2003 she suffered a bad spate, while having to undergo surgery for a genetic heart condition. The surgery left her tired. And when a year on she started a course of interferon and ribavirin drugs to tackle the hepatitis, the side effects began to take their toll.
"It was terrible," she adds. "Absolutely horrendous. I was suffering from anaemia, and then nearly died from septicaemia. After three months I had to stop."
These days, her glowing complexion and bright eyes are testimony to her sensible and upbeat approach.
"I would be lying if I said there weren't days when I would love to have a big muffin or something," she says. "But I know that I will just end up being sick because my liver can't take the fat."
Her advice to anyone coping with a recent diagnosis is to be positive and channel your energies into something good.
"I've met a lot of people who dwell on it too much, and it's so depressing," she says. "As much as you may feel like staying in bed, you have to get out and do things to feel normal. If you can't work, do some volunteering because helping others will stop you focusing on yourself all the time."
She also urges other nurses who have had injuries at work to get tested. She says: "If I hadn't been tested, I would have put my tiredness down to my age. There is a stigma that hepatitis C is a drug user's illness, but others are at risk too."
Indeed, it is estimated that of the 200,000 people in England who have the chronic liver condition, the majority are unaware as symptoms can take years or even decades to become apparent.
Despite this, hepatitis C is a serious disease that can be fatal if not treated.
Eileen knows that she may never clear the virus from her system, but by telling her story hopes others can avoid it completely.
An NHS campaign called Face It aims to raise awareness of the virus, and more information and details of World Hepatitis Awareness Day on October 1 can be found at hepc.nhs.uk or by calling 0800 451451.
