<p>Background: Hepatitis C is one of the most challenging among viral infections worldwide. The community may come to know that a person has hepatitis C and stigmatize him. The aim of this study was to evaluate perceived stigma and its role in predicting anxiety, depression and quality of life in patients with hepatitis C.</p>
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<p>Methods: This is a cross-sectional analytic study conducted in Behavioral Counseling Centers of three cities located in the western part of Iran from May to August of 2019. Stratified multistage sampling was performed to select 144 patients diagnosed with hepatitis C. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the linear regression model by means of SPSS version 20 (IBM) at the significance level of 0.05.</p>
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<p>Results: The mean perceived stigma was 66.805±1.291 with social rejection and social isolation achieving the highest score (23.409±0.551, 20.208±0.437). Perceived stigma was higher in men than women (p=0.01). The highest frequency of anxiety was detected among individuals with the highest levels of perceived stigma (40.28%). Stigma was statistically associated with quality of life, depression, and anxiety (p&lt;0.001).</p>
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<p>Conclusion: Hepatitis C carries the risk of perceived stigma from the community the individual lives in. Perceived stigma can cause anxiety, depression, and poor quality of life among patients with hepatitis C. It is recommended that counselors get involved in the lives of infected individuals, their families, friends and colleagues to control the negative psychological impacts of the disease.</p>