POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Questions About Treatment & Side Effects => Topic started by: poz4afewyears on April 17, 2009, 04:05:02 pm
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I do not have HCV.
I am wondering about a few things related to HCV treatment. My infectious disease specialist also treats HCV and he says he has never ever in his whole entire years of practice had someone complete Interferon therapy. Not once. He said he has had a few people in his practice complete a suicide attempt while taking interferon. My neurologist said a similar thing about interferon for multiple sclerosis. He said that it is a different type of interferon, though, and that it is more easily tolerated. He said he has had 2 patients complete a suicide while taking Interferon, but many complete therapy with it.
Is Interferon even used in HCV therapy anymore? Has anyone tried it? Does this sound accurate of HCV therapy?
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Yes hep C is treated with a combination of interferon and ribavarin. The treatment can (frequenetly does) depress your mood. but I reckon your id doc is a doomsayer. The neruologist is more on the mark perhaps. I know several people who have completed the treatment and lived to tell the tale -- indeed they are free of hep C too.
See this guide for chapter and verse (and some personal storied):
Hepatitis C for people lving with HIV (http://www.i-base.info/pdf/guides/2009/HCVmar09.pdf) - PDF, 800 Kb
There's a section on hep C in the Lessons section of this website too
- matt
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I completed 52 weeks of interferon/ribavirin back in 2002-03. I had a sustained response and am now considered cured of hep C, although we still check for a hcv VL once a year or so. I know a few others who completed the whole treatment, but I also know several who didn't because of the side-effects or because they weren't having a response (or both).
I agree with Matt the Newt, your doc sounds like a gloomy-gus. Glad he didn't oversee MY treatment, with an attitude like his, I might have been one of his suicide stats too. Oh dear.
Ann
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I started Interferon and Ribavirin in January, it's hardly been the greatest few months of my life so far but I'm still here and taking the treatment, alongside my HIV meds. I'm lucky to have genotype 2, one of the easier types of Hep C to treat and will have 24 weeks of treatment.
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Hi there - I know I'm bumping this thread up from a while back, but I just (about 30 min ago) got a call from my doc with a poz HCV diagnosis. I had posted yesterday about the slight yellowing of my eyes being a consequence of Reyataz, which I was really hoping was the case, but unfortunately it's not. I'm still very acute (had flu symptoms last week, which is why I went to the doc) and I'm scared shitless. Having all those "why me" feelings just like when I found out about HIV. I thought it was supposed to be difficult to get sexually, but either it isn't or I'm just unlucky.
Anyway, my doc is sending me to a specialist at Mt. Sinai who specializes in coinfection - Daniel Fierer. He has written about early fibrosis in HIV pos people, which is of course making me even more concerned. But he apparently believes in very early treatment and my doc tells me that everyone he has send to him has been cured. Of course I haven't seen him yet so have no idea what his recommendations will be, but I need some support and feedback/suggestions now. I can't believe I've gotten myself into this, just when I was starting to be comfortable with HIV and feeling like maybe I was actually going to live a decent lifespan and continue to enjoy the things that make life worth living...
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I've heard good reports about early hep C treatment. There's also a chance that you may clear the virus on your own - around 20% do.
Hang in there and let us know what the specialist says.
Ann
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Thanks Ann. I'm scared shitless right now, especially after reading the articles saying how must lower the chances of clearing are for poz guys. And I'm worried my numbers will be bad since I had flu symptoms and still have slightly yellow eyes. Then one article said symptoms can mean the body is responding and a better chance of clearing/good response. It's all driving me crazy with anxiety.
Seeing the specialist next week. Wish me luck and prayers.