Hepatitis C is a slow-moving killer that can be stopped. What's getting in the way?
LOS ANGELES — Michael Mendez said that when learned he had hepatitis C, "I didn't even know what it was."
Mendez, 47, had been homeless for years in Los Angeles, and said he hadn't gone to a doctor the entire time he was living on the streets. When Mendez got a roof over his head, at the Arroyo Seco Tiny Home Village, he decided to stop at the UCLA Health mobile clinic that rolled weekly to the Highland Park site — and soon learned about the infection that could jeopardize his life.
Hepatitis C, which spreads through infected blood, causes roughly 14,000 deaths annually across the country, according to federal figures. Doctors describe it as a slow and stealthy killer that can take years to show any symptoms. In some cases, the virus may clear on its own, but if left untreated, an infection can also lead to liver disease and cancer.
"If it wasn't for them, I would still have it," said Mendez, who was able to get treatment through the
