Alcohol Pre Treatment

[irishrayne]

I went for my pre treatment psych eval earlier this week. Found out that the docs don't want to start treatment unless the patient has been alcohol free for at LEAST six months prior. I was SO disappointed as I was hoping to begin tx ASAP.
I enjoy a glass of red wine with dinner. I knew NO alcohol during treatment and had planned to not drink for several weeks prior to.
Now I may be delayed into the new year befor I can start tx.
I just wanted to share with those of you who haven't started tx yet so that something like this doesn't hold you up as well.

[anise]

Sonic, thanks for being here, this is great!

Cajun - I tried to email you with the email but it keeps bouncing back?  

[cajunlady]

I was waiting for you to post so I can correct.  It is a new email for me, it is
***@****.  Leave the last four letter off the beginning.  Sorry, I checked with my husband and he corrected me.  Hubby is doing really, really good for just 2 weeks post of his stem cell transfusion.  Counts were so high he stunned the med. staff at UCLA.  What it takes people three months to get their counts back up that high, it only took my hubby one week.  He still gets very tired easily and has to nap during the day.  We will see in 6 months if it took care of this Hodgkins once and for all, with a pet scan.  

Did you go to your doctor yet.  If so, how did it turn out.  Let me know.

I went Monday to try and asperate the so called cyst in my rt breast, well there is no fluid and it is a solid mass.  I go for a biopsy on Friday morning.  He will take the mass completely out for biopsy since I have high risk breast cancer in my immediate family (maternal).  Then we will take it from there.

My hep doc mailed out my orders for me to get my 6 month post PCR.  I should get it tomorrow.  I will try and have the labs done this weekend; if I am lucky I will have them to go on Friday when I do my biopsy and have them drawn then.  Nervous, but time to see if tx worked for me.

Cajun

[jmjm530]

Amen. Amen. My docs allowed me to drink in moderation both pre-tx and post treatment. In fact, my current liver specialist wants me to drink 5-7 glasses of wine per week to try and raise my HDL cholesterol.

Irish, I don't know your stats, but if you really want to treat, the amount of alcohol consumption you mention should not be a barrier.

-- Jim

[jmjm530]

We've rehashed this in the past and a recent study shows no accelerated viral replications from alcohol, plus a recent study suggests that the warnings about alcohol consumption in terms of fibrotic progression only apply to *heavy* drinkers. http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/hcv/litreview1.htm (scoll down to commentary)

-- Jim

[jmjm530]

Good to hear from you. Are you done yet?

[mikesimon]

I have mentioned before that I drink an occasional glass of wine or two with dinner. For the last 6 or 7 months I have been getting labs every two weeks. My numbers have consistently been very good and they're getting better. I got lab results from yesterday's draw: ALT 14 & AST 21 & GGT 13. I am beginning to wonder if wine in moderation doesn't improve my liver function - as well as my blood sugar. Mike