Weight Loss/jm jm

Referring to your post yesterday, suggesting I go with redipen as I am overweight, have been considering it after what i have read here. Did you suggest I would lose more weight on pegasys? I need to lose weight as I also have fatty liver, no doubt it would help my high BP which is usually 150/100 with meds. Went through archives last night to learn about others in weight gain, noticed alot of hem put it back on after tx. you asked, I am Geno type 1, couldn't find viral load tests, will ask doc about it. Do you know of a site where it explains requirements needed for hep-c testing, thanx

[1fairygirl]

Hi!!
If you take the Pegasys, you will get the standard dose, one size fits all people over (I think) 160lbs, of 180mcg.  However, if you get the peg-intron, you will get a dose which is based on YOUR weight.  If you weigh more, you'll get more medication which makes it more likely to work for you.
I'm can't remember the exact weight for the Pegasys dose, but I'm sure someone will step in and correct me.  I've not heard of anyone losing more weight on Pegasys, I think it's just not as well suited for people who are over probably 180lbs.
Let us know what you decide to go with.  Good luck!!
Smiles,Sue

[cuteus]

there is no way of telling who will lose, gain or remain at the same wt on tx. No one can tell. It is as individual as how many side effects will be experienced with the meds.

[HepCat]

I don't think either interferon has been found to be more likely than the other to cause weight loss.  However, I did read a study recently which said it appeared Peg-Intron was better for overweight people possibly because of the weight dependant dosage.  You can probably locate it with google.  Previous studies have shown that overweight people respond less well to combo treatment.  Perhaps because they need bigger doses.

[chellski]

of all the sides i've gotten; the one i would welcome is weight loss - loss of taste; but nooooooo. haven't lost any appetite and maybe only lost 5lbs.  although i'm eating less and better, im not getting enough exercise; but starting water aerobics this month so maybe i will lose!
michelle

[go-girl]

I am getting impatient waiting to get started in the study, called again today am waiting for answer,I want to make sure I am going to get the proper dosage, and not placebo etc; if thats what the study is,I will opt out,I want to get at it and get rid of it the best way possible, would like to get the show on the road, will let you know when I start and I think I will go with redipen & take my chances with sx's. I am 25lbs overweight michelle so like you I hope I can lose and keep it off, will try my hardest, have always been thin till the menopause hit me YIKES my metabolism just shut down and never got going again, and I eat way less?????

[stc1993]

I was on the pegasus & copeg tx & lost 30 lbs. I've been finished for a month now & eating everything in sight & gained 5 lbs already.  My taste buds was messed up for about a week or so after tx but they are back to normal now.

Monte

[jmjm530]

Some people lose weight on treatment and some people gain weight. You won't know until you start treating.

Ideally, you would lose the 25 lbs before treatment. If not, Redipen might be a better choice since it is weight based, however some say it has more sides. But if you don't have a choice, I wouldn't worry too much. Both have similar success ratesa.

You suggest you're in a trial? I'd definitely find out exactly what meds and doses they will be giving you in advance. You also might ask if they allow Procrit or Neupogen in the event of anemia or low WBC.

Regarding blood pressure -- is the 150/100 on blood pressure meds? If you're not taking blood pressure meds, you probably should. IF you are, maybe your doctor should re-evaluate the med you're taking and/or the dose.

Re: viral load -- if they know your genotype, they should have already taken your PCR viral load test. Ask them, and also get your own copy of all the results. I'm sure you've mentioned it, but did you have a biopsy and what stage did it put you.

-- Jim

[1fairygirl]

I know exactly what you mean about not wanting to get a placebo.  That would be such a disappointment to spend all that time and energy and find out you were just going through the motions.  I also have trouble with my weight now after menopause.  I guess that just goes with the program.  I'm not losing any weight on treatment, as of yet, done shot #9/48.  I am starting to get picky with my eating now, though.  I wouldn't mind losing about 15lbs. but I'm not trying to do that right now.  I figure that after I get done, I'll have more energy for exercise, etc.  Keep us up on what you decide about doing that study or if you decide just to go with doing the meds straight out.  Good luck!!
Smiles, Sue

[go-girl]

I am stage 3 fibosis and am on Atacand meds for blood pressure. I have a call in to the study and am going to ask about dosage etc;before I commit to study. I'm in Vancouver/Canada and am covered and have been accepted for pharmacare, it may cost me feww hundred up front then the rest is taken care of, I just thought that the study would be better, are they? thanx

[jmjm530]

Studies can offer many advantages including free medical care, a knowledgeable medical staff, good supervision, and sometimes the opportunity to try drugs not available to the general public.

The main disadvantage as I see it is that your treatment is not individualized, but rather follows a pre-set protocol. The other problem is that in some studies you don't know what drug/dosage you're taking. What's more, intervention with drugs like Procrit and Neupogen are often limited or not allowed.

The best thing is to get as much information as possible on what protocol's the treatment study will use before making a decision. If I remember correctly -- because I considered the initial peg study  they have a very lengthly and detailed document that outlines everything.

It's good that you're going through this process now rather than second-guessing your decision after you started, which unfortunately happened to me.

All the best with your decision.

-- Jim

[go-girl]

I have a call in to the study, hopefully I will hear Tues as Mon here is a holiday, i am going to ask all those questions you mentioned, and will go from there. i wouldn't have known to check this out beforehand, was luck to have run into this forum by a fluke searching around, had it not been for all of you, i wouldn't have known to do this, thank-you all PS are there other forums as good as this one?????

[BronxRican007]

I felt that if I wanted to beat this disease I had to give myself the best chance. I too have the fatty liver so I worked out 6 months to lose 40 lbs before I started. You're right a lot of other things get better when you lose the weight, my BP, pulse, repiration, energy level, appetite, taste of food, fat off my butt, etc etc. They've done the studies, the more overweight you are the less chance you'll have of acheiving SVR. Make no mistake, We're fighting for our lives and in this battle you need every advantage you can get. Weight loss was the easiest for me to acheive. Good luck on your journey!
BR007

[jmjm530]

Here are a few more forums. They're all different. An "*" designates doctor run. Note on home page of Janis forum they have a number of informational links.

http://janis7hepc.com/ (home page)
http://forums.delphiforums.com/friendship7/messages (disc group)
http://tinyurl.com/axdzh
http://www.hcvanonymous.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl
* http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Hepatitis/
http://www.hcvinprison.org/forum_new/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=2

[fresnoborn]

I am on the peg-intron. this is week 11 and since I started, I have lost 15 pounds. Before I started treatment, I lost 22lbs. That was due to the deep depression I fell into just discovering what was wrong with me. So I lost a total of 37 lbs so far, but not cause I tried, I just did. It varies from person to person, I think. I needed to lose the weight anyway. And I will more than likely gain some of it back when I'm done with treatment. Good luck to you