Genotype results!!

Just got my genotype back...it's 3a...is that bad???

[desrt]

It means you have about an 80% chance of clearing the virus and you will only need to take interferon and ribavirin. Genotype 1 patients need to take a third drug in order to have as good a chance. You might also want to do an IL28B test, if it's available where you are. This can help you in making tretment decisions if you are not undetected by week 4.

http://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085(10)00841-3/abstract

[orphanedhawk]

If you have to have hep C, genotype 3 is good news.

[willbb]

Just to add to what desrt has mentioned ..the tx protocol is usually 24 weeks vs. the 48 often still endured by folks with G1.

Best...
Will

[miscitalia]

just saw the specialist and yes she confirmed that fact that it will probably be a 24 week tx...and in the misfortune 3a is fortunate!...at week 4 she said I will be taking another test to see my reaction to the tx...and we will go from there...what is the il28b?...I'll google!...feel better now...I've gotten used to the idea...hell blew over but now just riding the fire waves!...

[penn1023]

I read that PSI7977 with riba clears 2 and 3's in 12 weeks now. Try to get on a trial if you can

[gonnabhepcfree]

I am geno 3 and am in the PSI7977 and BMS 790052 study and cleared in seven days.  

[Livinontheedge]

Great news !  Sorry you have HCV, but at least you have a great chance of slaying this dragon.   I have had two friends who have the same GT as you and they both cleared the virus with 24 weeks on peg & riba.   You can do this mi Bella bambalina !      xoxoxoxoxo    

[miscitalia]

I will definitely ask about the PS17977 and BMS 790052...I too want to clear in seven days!!!...and yes I will slay this dragon!!!

[gnrmac]

If you have to have hep C, genotype 3 is good news.

I beg to differ on that statement. Then again it depends on what country you are in. Third round of treatment Gen3. Sorry for the downer but I have just finished my 7 or 8 time on the toilet with my world falling out of my bottom. On a high point it will help with the weight loss. Good luck to you all

[nygirl7]

G3 can be in some unfortunate cases every bit as hard to beat as g1 - it's just not as common for that to happen (failure).  so it's good news but can also not be good news.

Treat and treat as your life is counting on it, don't miss a dose or think you can slack off this is serious stuff and we've seen G3s who have failed tx before. (Not to say you will or that it's likely but GNR is correct in this).

[pirate302]

Geno 3 also wasn't so lucky.  Do beleive I should have been dosed by weight base and not by the book.  Was undetected after 24 weeks and relapsed in the following 6 months.  No knowledge of when I was undetected.  Knowledge is power .wish I had waited to gain that little bit extra,

[orphanedhawk]

Gee, I was trying to be upbeat.
I believe hope and a positive attitude can go a long way.
I'm sorry it didn't work for you.
The genotype 3s in my life, have all cleared first try.

[gnrmac]

sorry about the downer no offense meant. I do know that there has been good results for Gen3.

[desrt]

nygirl7 and gnmac are correct - 1 out of 5 geno 3s do not clear with standard treatment, just like aprox. 1 out of 5 geno 1s do not clear even with triple treatment. This is why the IL28B test can be important. The IL28B tells you your body's genotype just like a HCV genotype test can tell you about the virus. These two things are the two most important factors that predict success before starting treatment. After tx starts, how your body reacts to the meds helps predict if you will be successful. Geno 1s now have what are called 'futility rules' that tell them by week 12 of triple tx whether they should go on. We geno 3s have our own 'futility rule' which is the result of our 4 week viral load test combined with the result of the IL28B test. Depending on the results of the test - CC, CT, or TT you have different odds of reaching SVR. This can tell whether you should go on as you have been, try to treat longer and more aggressively, or stop and wait for a different tx. The link I posted at the top explains some of this. Here in the US the test is about $300. I don't know about the cost or availibility in Europe.
Good Luck.

[orphanedhawk]

I still think being genotype 3 is a good thing, especially when it comes to the new oral meds, check this out:

PSI-7977 plus Standard Therapy Cures 100% of Genotype 2-3 Hepatitis C Patients

Pharmasset's investigational hepatitis C virus (HCV) polymerase inhibitor PSI-7977 combined with pegylated interferon/ribavirin cured 100% of people with HCV genotype 2 and 3 in the Phase 2b PROTON trial; sustained response results for hard-to-treat genotype 1 patients are expected later this year.

Link:
http://www.hivandhepatitis.com/hcv-treatment/experimental-hcv-drugs...

[curiouslady1]

Interferon free PSI 7977 +Riba  showed a 100% SVR for GT 2 and 3 in a recent trial presented at AASLD.

http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/VRUS/1405277499x6521170x515444/dce3c4f4-e7c8-4e56-8aeb-4a86cdc5f8da/VRUS%20AASLD%20IR%20deck_110611_FINAL2.pdf

[desrt]

I hope this pans out, though I tend to take presentations that appear to be prepared for investors with a grain of salt. I skimmed through the 88 pages in the link and couldn't find the size of the trial that was"100%"
I did notice a few things however:

."Statements in this presentation that are not historical
facts are “forward-looking statements"

"SVR12"  (*Not* SVR24)

Anticipate NDA filing in 2H2013

Not something I would use to justify delaying tx at this point, but hopefully we'll hear more about this and confirmation of the promising results.

[curiouslady1]

http://www.news-medical.net/news/20110720/Final-SVR-results-from-Pharmassets-PSI-7977-phase-2b-study-in-HCV.aspx

There is more.  All it requires is an interested googler.  Going to the Pharmasset web site is the easiest for me.  The poster could also follow my journals which discussed this drug quite a bit.  While many are still suspicious about PSI 7977, I remain extremely concerned about the triple therapy and the ability of others to withstand it.  As if to confirm my concerns,  a study coordinator also expressed considerable concern about how sick ALL of the individuals in the studies at our research site involving the triple therapy were getting.  There are likely more and more doctors I imagine that are advising their patients to wait for more benign treatments if at all possible as information comes in that this is a liklihood in within a few years..  PSI is not a supplement.  It is approved by the FDA for investigational use.  Yes, it is in early trial stages but there is tremendous amount of support and evidence already that this drug will be moved ahead into FDA approval for the general public.  If people could just wait a year, there will be a new cohort able to report on SVR in GT 1.  So far, the great results (the presentation to AASLD spoke of 40 GT 2/3) is for GT 2/3.  Perhaps there is more data in now than there was in July.   I hope the poster takes notice.  

[cbe2]

is any hope for GT 4

[gnrmac]

Just popped back to give an update.. Got my results back today no SVR again, so not that easy to treat. Weight based treatment for 9 months..