Long term side effects of interferon

[Melvil]

Dear all,

My wife was treated for her HCV in 2001 with interferon plus ribavirin. She was like a guinea pig and now, 8 years after, she is living with side effects that have never gone : hypotension (around 8), fainding every day, unbearable headaches, kidney pyelonephritis every months, and an exhausting fatigue that keep her in her bed sometimes several days, where she can hardly eat alone. Before that, she was so full of life, making car races, flying planes, being a model for photographes, and photographer herself. All the physicians and experts that she met told her that it was impossible to be due to the Interferon treatment, but before the treatment, all went well. She is so exhausted that she can't fight no more against medical community in order to admit the origin of her symptoms and to push them to try to find a beginnning of solution.
Is there any progress in the comprehension of the cause of these symptoms ? Are there some new treatments that appeared recently to counteract exhaustion and pains ? Do people group themselves in associations to better fight against this disaster ? Would you have some testimonies, books or adresses to advice us in order to be updated in the comprehension of these sides effects and their potential treatments ?
Any information will really be of great help,
With my best regards.

[Emily_MHManager]

Hi everyone -

Please do not disrupt the forum with personal insults and fighting. Either ignore what you don't like, or report it.

Thanks!

Emily

[rambleon40]

Thank you.

[orphanedhawk]

Mikesimon had a transplant from hep C, did tx 3 times and finally rid himself of the virus. He is great at digging up research information for all kinds of things hep C, related on many sides of the spectrum.
To call him a rep is ludicrous.
We are lucky he still takes the time to post.

I'm sure I got hep C in my late teens. Nevertheless I landed up with decompensated cirrhosis.
Did tx, relapsed, had a transplant and am doing currently doing tx.
Of course I wish there was something else for me to use other than interferon but you know what? I'm not bitter.

Life is what it is.
Nobody forces anyone to do treatment it is our choice.

Please check facts before passing them as truth.

[rambleon40]

Fair enough to call "BS."  

I cannot find the drug warning in which i saw the 20% number.  


The following says 2.5% to 20%.

http://www.hepatitis-central.com/hcv/ifn/sideeffects.html


A current Pegasys warning says 4% during treatment.

http://www.drugs.com/pro/pegasys.html#S6.1


Research shows that interefron triggers failure, and failure takes some time to develop, per the following .pdf

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCYQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fjcem.endojournals.org%2Fcontent%2F89%2F8%2F3656.full.pdf&ei=COImT7eIIYaatweMobzaCQ&usg=AFQjCNEwPbG1fqSF7Mc0yIci0PEUsDznJg&sig2=CSqwXcdIJGRM1xfT9_GZeg.

My own thyroid failure did not begin to occur until some few months after cessation of treatment.

[rambleon40]

I was diagnosed in 1992.  Hep C was newly discovered and poorly treated.  The CDC said 5% then. My present math presumes 5%.

I hope this is not an "inane rambling."

I know I am posting a lot.  Forgive me.

[nygirl7]

PS Ramble if you ever watched ANYONE die of end stage liver disease or valiantly fight to get a liver transplant that will save their lives - you would know how ludicrous your posts are.