Sitting at the kitchen table of his Mays Chapel home, Mike Gimbel points to the large spots of makeup on his hands and talks about how his past drug addictions continue to affect his life.

The makeup covers up bruises that are the symptoms of Gimbel's battle with Hepatitis-C, a virus that attacks the liver and may one day require the 57-year-old to undergo a liver transplant.

Gimbel -- the former head of the Baltimore County Office of Substance Abuse -- believes he contracted the disease, which can remain dormant in the body for decades, "most likely when I was injecting drugs when I was 19 or 20 years old."

Gimbel was a heroin addict at that time, living in Baltimore with his drug dealer, using drugs and sharing needles.

He recently celebrated 37 years of sobriety, and speaks frankly about that time. Sometimes he is deadly serious; other times he makes his past the punchline of a joke.

He's has never been shy about talking about his life, including his addictions and an experience with a cult.

He jokingly refers to it as "the longest-running reality series." It's also a path that he said helped him find his calling -- a calling to educate children and adults on the dangers of drug and substance abuse.

He served 23 years with the county Office of Substance Abuse until he was fired by County Executive Jim Smith in December 2002.

He now oversees the Powered by Me program at St. Joseph Medical Center -- a program designed to educate student athletes about the dangers of substance abuse and performance-enhancing drugs.

"I want to talk about it so that kids understand there are (long-term) consequences to your actions," Gimbel said. "I'm an example."

Gimbel was diagnosed nearly a decade ago, after a routine doctor's visit. "It was a fluke of a test," Gimbel said. "(the doctor) got concerned and sent me to see a specialist."

But he has come forward recently to offer yet another cautionary tale about the lasting effects of drug abuse.

Hepatitis-C is the most common of the strains in the United States, according to Dr. Harold Tucker, a physician at Greater Baltimore Medical Center in Towson.

"Most people don't even know they have it," Tucker said.

About 20 percent of the cases can be cured through a treatment of Interferon and ribovirin. The treatment can cause some serious side effects, including fatigue and depression, Tucker said.

In the other 80 percent, treatments are less effective and sometimes require a liver transplant for those who have severe scarring of the liver. Removing the diseased liver does not cure the patient, who remains infected with the virus and ultimately re-infects their new liver, Tucker said.

Gimbel said while the disease has forced him to take a look at his own mortality, "this is not a death sentence."

Since being diagnosed, he has turned to exercise as a way of strengthening his body for fighting the disease. By his own admission, he's become somewhat of an exercise addict. He's run 15 marathons. He ran the Boston Marathon this year for the seventh time, finishing in about 4 hours.

"Obviously, this is what I am running from," he said of Hepatitis-C.

And he wants to use his experience to teach. Everything, from his drug abuse and recovery to his battle with liver disease and running marathons has played a part in what he says is a calling.

"Everything I've done has led me to the next phase in my life," Gimbel said.

"It's why God has me doing the work I'm doing."

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