cirrhosis after prolonged sobriety

[tdig]

I am reading more and more about folks being diagnosed years after becoming sober. Can someone please shed some light on this?

[Dee1956]

First congratulations on the sobriety!! That is amazing!

Yodennis!  I am so very happy for you

Ceanthus, really great answers, thank you so much for sharing.

OH, great to see you!

Andiamo has improved one or two levels in 6 years, JimJim530 recently came back and said he was a 3/4 now a 0-1 after 5 or 6 years.

pretty good.

[ceanothus]

Hey there Yodennis, I'm also really glad that the virus has been evicted from your liver (and mine, and so many others here)!

[yodennis]

Even though it is obvious that a HCV infection is independent of alcoholism per se it is hard not to conflate alcoholism with cirrhosis based on the common association. I was around 25 years sober when I was diagnosed with HCV caused cirrhosis: that's some pathological irony!.......I have 0 histologic updates since the triple therapy defeated the virus (over a year now) because I have no insurance But I'm sure glad my liver is no longer a picnic for the HCV virus!

[Dee1956]

Hi I found the thread from one of our members, his liver has really improved
I hope this helps

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Hepatitis-C/JmJm530----From-Stage-3-4-to-Normal----Six-Years-Post-TX/show/1699961#post_7794114

[Dee1956]

Hello I just returned from my doctors office.  I am now Hep C free and he said that the researchers are finding that the liver can regenerate even some of the scarred part of our livers.  It is a miracle!

I remember one or two members coming back after treating their Hep C and saying that the damage to their livers had reversed 2 levels in 6 years.
That is very good news!
Best wishes to all of you

Congratulations of the sobriety

[orphanedhawk]

I'd like to pipe in here to say I know of some people whose livers were in the beginning stages of cirrhosis from hep C, did the treatment, and their livers have recuperated. It take time, a good 5 years but it has happened.
As ceanothuses pointed out the big difference is whether the liver is compensated or decompensated.

It is important to find a doctor you trust. Don't hesitate in seeking a second or even third opinion.

Good luck,
OH

[bluebird305]

It is a miracle in its self that by the grace of god we were able to stop what primarily did the damage to our liver.  (ALCHOHOL) .  I am blessed just to have made it this far considering.  We do not know for sure of the outcome of our troubles, but I know GOD will give us the strength to get through it, and this is a biggie.  I am so thrilled with the number of people who have sobriety.  Congrats to you all.  I will be 9yrs sober june 9th.  I am the kinda person that needs to take I moment at a time.  Thank you all for sharing.  Love Ya Guys  bluebird305

[tdig]

Thanks everyone for your responses and encouragement!  Ceanothus, I greatly appreciate your details. As stated I am also struggling with severe! OCD / Hypochondranosis so it has been hard to trust the dr's.  Your words and hands on expertise have greatly put my mind at ease. I look forward to enjoying an afternoon at the pool with my kids!!

[ceanothus]

I can really only give you the basics. Cirrhosis can be compensated, which means that the liver is still able to perform all of its critical functions, or when it starts to fail in some of those functions it is referred to as decompensated cirrhosis, or ESLD (end stage liver disease).

If your only risk is from excessive drinking and you are no longer drinking then you should have a good checkup with a gastroenterologist and ask them to evaluate your liver health. If all your blood tests and physical exam indicate no problems then they may consider a biopsy or fibroscan to be unnecessary, but it there is a hint of a problem then you can always ask for one of the tests. Cirrhosis can only be diagnosed with certainty by having a biopsy (or a fibroscan will give a somewhat less certain diagnosis), unless one already has a few signs of decompensation, in which case the cirrhosis becomes pretty obvious.

If you were to be diagnosed with cirrhosis the only immediate changes would be that you'd want to transfer to the care of a hepatologist and that you'd need to see the hepatologist every 6 months. Compensated cirrhosis can't be treated other than to avoid alcohol and NSAIDs and to limit Tylenol intake, but it does increase one's risk of liver cancer, so it requires seeing your specialist every 6 months for blood tests, an abdominal ultrasound and a physical exam. The blood tests are primarily looking at CBC, especially platelets (which tend to get low with cirrhosis), at liver enzymes (which tend to elevate in response to liver damage), at albumin and bilirubin levels, and at AFP (a marker for liver cancer). The ultrasound is looking at size changes in the liver, spleen and kidneys, changes in flow of blood through the liver, at any accumulation of fluids in the abdomen (ascites), at enlarged veins in the abdomen (varices, which are a risk for internal bleeding), and screening for tumors in the liver.

I've been getting all those tests every six months for decades already and will need them for the rest of my life, but now that I've eliminated the original source of my liver damage my hepatologist tells me all my future visits will be very probably quite boring and uneventful. I don't know as much about alcohol-induced damage, but would expect  sobriety to greatly reduce your risks. BTW, a big congratulations on your win on sobriety! You've done yourself a HUGE favor there.

[pugdaddy]

tdig, congratulations on your sobriety!!  that is a wonderful achievement.  compensated cirrhosis is typically without any symptoms.  it means that the liver is scarred, but still functioning perfectly fine.  people can live for years, sometimes many years, with compensated cirrhosis - without knowing it, since it has few if any symptoms.  to further complicate the matter, any symptoms can often be mistaken for (or attributed to) other causes.  I've heard estimates that only a small percentage - perhaps 1/4 or less - of those with cirrhosis are aware of the fact.  Additionally without question more people die WITH cirrhosis than die FROM it...meaning that they had undiagnosed cirrhosis yet died from some other cause.

[tdig]

Thanks again.. could you help me understand "compensated" cirhossis a little better?  How were you diagnosed and were there any symptoms or blood work that pointed to it?  I greatly appreciate all of your help. I am overcoming some mental health issues that allowed me to "self medicate" for way to long.  I am completely sober and on the road to recovery and want to make sure I am as healthy as I can be going forward for my 2 young children. Thank you
!

[tdig]

Thanks for the info.  It's the undiagnosed cirrhosis for years that scares me.  I have been seeing my dr. and aside from a "fatty liver" ultrasound we are following up on, all other blood work/physical seem good. I am hep negative. I am wondering if I should push for a fibroscan or biopsy or something..??  any suggestions?

[ceanothus]

The liver is a remarkable organ in its ability to regenerate itself after many injuries, but it loses most of that ability when the damage crosses a line between the first 3 stages of fibrosis and the final stage, cirrhosis. I believe this is due to the extensive scar tissue that replaces healthy tissue at that final stage. So common wisdom would say that if you've damaged your liver to the degree of having cirrhosis, you will always have cirrhosis. People who are diagnosed years after quitting drinking have probably either had undiagnosed cirrhosis for all those years, or they may have had some lesser damage that was later compounded by a second problem and advanced to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis itself can be present for many years with no symptoms, and is often uncovered only after unusual blood test results, or sometimes not until the liver begins to decompensate, or fail.

I've had compensated cirrhosis for 9 years and have no really obvious signs of it, just excessive fatigue. I've recently been finally able to get rid of the viral infection that caused it, but have been told that I will always have the cirrhosis. My doctor has told me my liver will slowly remodel itself into a healthier form but it will not really regenerate like a less-damaged liver would. Does that help you? I'm afraid its about the best I can do at explaining.

[bluebird305]

I am sorry I did not mean to sound  like a doctor.  I'm just trying to help.  I am really scared  God bless you bluebird305

[bluebird305]

I also was diagnosed with cirrosis (severe), after being sober 9yrs And like you I am not as educated as I should be. I have hepc for about 30yrs.  They say that even though the hepc viris is cleard up, you cannot reverse cirrosis.  Please do not take this as written in bood.  We don't know what is around the corner. There are such things as miracles. GOD WILL GIVE US THE STRENGTH!  So If you want, we can keep in touch, with all our updates.  Be grateful and if you get scared, know that are people who care ou there.  Bluebird305