When applying for life insurance in 1986 this founding member of The Grateful Dead tested positive for what his doctor called non-A, non-B Hepatitis (NANBH). This is because Hepatitis C was not a known disease until scientists with Chiron Corporation "discovered" it Christopher Columbus style in 1989.
Lesh has gone on to survive several battles with the disease and has released several new songs since his diagnosis.
Chiron Corporation became the exclusive patent holder of Hepatitis C after paying the CDC $1.9 million in 1990. They now own patent rights to the virus in over 100 countries and have won several patent infringement lawsuits.