HEP is the new HERPS

Aerosmith's Steven Tyler has been secretly battling hepatitis C — a serious viral infection of the blood, often associated with dirty needles, that can lead to chronic liver disease.

But the 58-year-old recovering drug addict tells "Access Hollywood's" Nancy O'Dell that after a year of interferon treatments, "It is nonexistent in my bloodstream … where it's like a complete cure." In an interview airing tomorrow night, Tyler says he was diagnosed three years ago but "I've had hepatitis C for a long time, asymptomatic. "I've been pretty quiet about this," he says. "The band took a break about three years ago. … [My doctor] said now is the time, and it's 11 months of chemotherapy" — actually, interferon, which strengthens the immune system — "so I went on that, and it about killed me." He added: "You know, it really hurt. It was a bad, bad period. I'm in AA, and I tried to go three, four, five months with nothing, and it about killed me.

"Hepatitis C is the one that, of all the people in this room, at least three have it and don't know it," Tyler says. "It's the silent killer. I may go on 'Oprah' and talk about this. I hope you don't mind me mentioning that."

Steven, I don't mind. What I would like to know is why your nose is melting off your face. What caused THAT, exactly?

[source]