Looking for Advise

I went to my physician to follow up on medication, he stated before he could give me another prescription he needed me to have blood test taken, which I did and it came back showing hepatitis C, I am 56 years old and I never knew I had it. I am not yet employed and I have no insurance.  I was at a health fair a couple of days ago and my blood glucose read 141mg/dl and cholesterol read 218, and they stated the readings were kinda high, I am feeling lightheaded, feeling tired, confusion and not as alert as I used to be, could the readings be because of the Hep C? I feel so overwhelmed just do not know where to start to find financial help, I did look on clinical trail I can not even understand what they are looking for, but I did not see anything there. I live in Florida, any suggestions?

[gsx1250fa]

Here is a link to trial info in Orlando. Maybe worth the drive for you. I am currently on Gilead gs-5885/sofosbuvir.riba study. Good luck.
http://www.clinicalconnection.com/hepatitis-c-clinical-trials-in-orlando-florida

[gsx1250fa]

Might have to copy and paste the link to open.

[can-do-man]

First you need to find out if you just have the antibodies, you will need a PCR run to find this out..... And no what you describe does not sound like anything to do with havin Hep-C... Sounds like you need to keep an eye on your sugar level as well with some follow up testing.... Welcome here and wishing you the best.

[rivll]

Welcome to the forum.

You asked if the reason you are feeling tired and light headed was because you have Hep. C..While some people do not experience symptoms,many do. I certainly did, especially in the last 10 years.
Hep.C does cause extra hepatic manifestations. See the link for more info.
/emedicine.medscape.com/article/177792-clinical
"Symptoms often first develop as clinical findings of extrahepatic manifestations of HCV and most commonly involve the joints, muscle, and skin. In a large study of the extrahepatic manifestations of HCV, 74% of medical workers with HCV infection demonstrated extrahepatic manifestations"
It is important to find a teaching hospital near you with liver specialists. You may be able to apply for Charity Care or if you go to the County hospital they usually treat people without an income. I am from California so I don't know how Florida works, but the best thing to do is find the hospital and start applying for the C Care. They will make you jump through hoops and it may take awhile, but between a County hospital and a teaching hospital, you should end up with a Dr.(Make sure it is an experienced G.I. or a Hepatologist)

The Dr. will run tests to find out the condition of your liver and talk to you about available treatments. The drugs can be obtained free of cost if you don't have an income, your Dr. will work with you on that and you can discuss the options on the forum as well, the people here have a wealth of information to share.

Hopefully people from Florida will chime in on what the procedure for HCV tre atmentis in your state.

Stay tuned to this forum, you will learn a lot and don't put off getting TX.
Good luck and all the best to you.

[rivll]

HA! I am a slow typist. Can-do had replied before I was halfway through.

Can-do-man is one of the experts and he is correct that your symptoms may not be a result of Hep. C however, there is evidence that some people do have extra hepatic manifestations and your feelings of being tired and confused *could* be related.

[can-do-man]

Rivll is correct, I should not discount this being caused by Hep-C as IR is related to Hep-C as is fatigue........ Thanks Rivll, Deb have a PCR done and then go from there.

[deborah202]

Thank you all for your help!

[tigerbeware]

Hello

If you can get on some kind of medical assistance through your state to pay for most of the Doctors visits and get referrals to specialist, there are programs to help with the medicine you need to be treating the hep c. (I don't know about the other stuff).  You will have to JUMP THROUGH A LOT OF HOOPS and there is going to be a lot of RED TAPE.  ~~~YOU ARE WORTH IT.~~~

Here is a link for patience assistance:
  
http://www.merck.com/merckhelps/

Check it out.  You may qualify.  
Don't give up, you will find some kind of help.
Without it, most people could not afford treatment .

Good Luck,
tigerbeware

[Idyllic]

Most clinical trials are based on genotype and a few other factors.

You sound very overwhelmed. The symptoms you describe could be attributed to many things. I can imagine how shocked you must have been to hear you could have a liver disease. Still, I agree with those who point out it it not clear you have Hepatitis C.  I say that since most doctors run the test for Hepatitis C Antibody.  

I am not saying that is the case with you but it is not uncommon for people to come on here certain they have the virus when they have not been tested for it.

The Antibody test means you have been exposed to Hepatitis C. The PCR detects presence of the virus in your blood and depending on which test is ordered can even tells you your viral load. Plus, (if not done simultaneously), genotyping is done.

You might want to call your doctor and clarify this. In fact I would ask for a copy of the test and take it from there.