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hep c 1 a and b

my son has hep c 1 a and b...he was told he cant get treatment until he has been ddrug and alcohol free for a yr....that wont be until dec 20....what are his chances?  he is showing symptoms of liver damage...throwing up blood, stomach and chest pain and dark urine....
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Avatar universal
linda...thanky ou so much ...you just gave me the information i have been looking for.....i had a blood test this week and i do not have hep c....thank GOD.....the local health dept told andy that he would need chemo...the only info i am getting is what andy tells me...i will tell him what questions to ask...........he is confused about what some of the results mean and reporting them to me wrong....i have been able to figure out most of it just by listening here.....i have a little bit of medical back ground but not in that area....i was an x-ray tech many years ago....my mohter was a nurse and my sister is a nurse turned minister...my cousin was a dr....another cousin is in medical sales and my nephew is an inhalation therapist...i will start looking for a dr and financail help for him... i will have him request his medical records when he is released from prison
Helpful - 0
131817 tn?1209529311
My heart goes out to you. I have spent so much time trying to get my son help. I can't even go into all the details, it would take too long.  Hep C is something you/he need to get checked out and learn about. It is an insideous disease that can be really awful or not. Hopefully not.  First you need to find a good Dr. that specializes in hepatology, one in a teaching hospital is best. Don't go to joe scmoe GI for tx, you will be sorry.I did that and am sorry now.  Get a Biopsy or Fibroscan and find out what stage his liver is in. Also you need to get a PCR to find out the genotype and viral load. If he has a low stage of fibrosis (inflamation) then perhaps he can wait for new drugs coming down the pike, if his stage is higher, like a stage 3 or 4, you don't want to wait for treatment.  Anyway, get the Dr, the PCR, the biopsy and let us know the numbers. Many here are really good at reading lab reports. You can post them here. Be sure you get copies of all his lab reports.  Finding a good Hepatologist is key,  not sure about MO, but I am sure you have good teaching hospitals there.   Keep posting, lots of great support for you and your son!  

Best wishes!
Linda
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Avatar universal
it is so hard dealing with problems of our children....at this point i am so afraid of losing andy.....having hep c 1 a and b.....i really dont know enough about it yet to know just how serious it is....i just know i am scared for him...i dont know if it is painful or how long he has to suffer......i have worried for several years about finding him dead of an overdose, bad drugs or someone killing him because of drugs....i have lost a lot of sleep and cried a lot of tears...he is wasting his talents....he has a beautiful voice, sang in a select show choir in school and writes gorgeous poetry....he got into drugs his junior yr in high schoo....started off with marijuana then progressed to meth in his senior yr...my heart has broken over and over to watch his destroy himself....i know a lot of mothers have been through it but until recently i had no one to talk to...that is why i looked for a forum....i want to help anyone who needs it but i have to learn a lot more before i can....all i can do at this point is listen to anyone who wants to talk....
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131817 tn?1209529311
I am starting to recover from my own shock! lol  Okay, take a deep breath!  My son is bipolar and in a half way house. Church stuff does help him the most and I hope it does again. Bipolar's typically self medicate and he did everything, I don't even know how much and or what. I have been dealing with his illness since age 14. I sure hope his time out now can bring him some peace and reality. He now doesn't even believe he is bipolar...It has been a really hard road for me trying to get him help.  I hope for both of us that our son's can get well and off their addicitions.  Mine wasn't on Meth, thank God, but he still is in so much denial.  That is the biggest problem of all. He seems to be doing well at the moment, lot's of people watching him and his church based faith help him....I  hope it works for mine and yours.

Thanks KC....you saved my butt...I would have had nightmares and who knows what else if you hadn't explained this.  Thanks so much!

Linda
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Avatar universal
thanks randy.....really glad you are here tonight......you have been more help than you realize...also a fellow missourian....even though i am originally from illinois....been here 22 yrs.....
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Avatar universal
thanks randy.....really glad you are here tonight......you have been more help than you realize...also a fellow missourian....even though i am originally from illinois....been here 22 yrs.....
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264233 tn?1216342315
i am finally glad i could be of assitance to someone.  in the future take only one dose of kcrandy per session.  any more than the prescribed dose can leed to headaches, confusion, serious brain fog and god knows what else  lol.  : O )
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Avatar universal
so sorry....calm down..everything is ok....no shoch treatments  lol.....everybody here has a lot on our minds and i know i get upset pretty easily.....andy is getting the kind of treatment he needs to get away from meth...he is learning life skills....i was upset at the thought of my son in prison but his probabion officer explained to me what would happen so ia m alright with it now...i was the first to admit he needed help but was afraid "prison" would make it worse....he has been to rehab twice and relapsed both times so i am praying this does it for him...he seems to have a better outlook on life now..a life without meth.....now we just have to deal with the hep c and get it under control when he comes home......he will be living in a place called church army...it is likea half way house...he calls it envionment controlled living....he was there before getting into trouble this last time and was doing well....or so i thought....he even has a job as soon as he gets home...
Helpful - 0
131817 tn?1209529311
Oh Geez, thanks for telling me this. My stomach was turning and I was extremely upset hearing this...I just didn't understand. Thanks for the clarification. I wouldn't have slept thinking of those shock tx's. I still don't feel better yet, but I will.  What a trip that was!  Hey, I a a tough love mother, but shock tx just wouldn't cut it!  Okay, I  am trying to laugh and be okay now. Whewwww.  what a long hard trip it's been......thanks!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
my son is not psychotic other than what meth has made him....he is off drugs while in prison...the shock treatment is just the states way of saying they are going to show him what prison is and hope it shocks him back to reality...there is no kind of shock treatment going on..he is not bipolar or anything...just a drug addict...a recovering addict now.....i am sorry you misunderstood and got upset....ya k now, missouri is the show me state so they have to show them what prison is like.....kcrandy explained it very well.....thank you randy.....my son had a 3 yr sentece suspended for domestic assault, which his ex girlfriend was just as guilty or more so and got nothing.....he got into trouble for probation violations....instead of serving the 3 yrs, the judge ordered the 120 days....better for all of us that way....
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Avatar universal
my son is not psychotic other than what meth has made him....he is off drugs while in prison...the shock treatment is just the states way of saying they are going to show him what prison is and hope it shocks him back to reality...there is no kind of shock treatment going on..he is not bipolar or anything...just a drug addict...a recovering addict now.....i am sorry you misunderstood and got upset....ya k now, missouri is the show me state so they have to show them what prison is like.....kcrandy explained it very well.....thank you randy.....my son had a 3 yr sentece suspended for domestic assault, which his ex girlfriend was just as guilty or more so and got nothing.....he got into trouble for probation violations....instead of serving the 3 yrs, the judge ordered the 120 days....better for all of us that way....
Helpful - 0
264233 tn?1216342315
she is reffering to a metafhore that missouri uses for shocking a person that is going to prison for the first time. the correct way to call it is shock probation. and instead of going directly to prison the person goes thru a period of 120 days in which the state hopes will shock the offender after seeing what prison life is like for 120 days.  after the 120 days the person is either released to a halfway house or to their approved home etc. and remains on probation for the remainder of their sentence at which time they will have their crime expundged. therefor the metaphore 120 day shock..
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
we are in southwest missouri.....about 4 hours from kc and 4 hours from st louis.....springfield is the closest larger city......andy was just moved from fulton to farmington where he will get his treatment for drug addiction....he has a very good attitude and wants to be a substance abuse counselor when he gets out in may.......htank you for the help...i will start looking into drug companies and i thin i will call some of the doctors i know from when we lived near chicago.....my mother was a retired nurse and my cousin was a doctor but they have both died in the past 4 yrs....but i still know a lot of the medical professionals back home....he was not in the military so the va is out for this son...i have another son who is a vet but without hep c......just post deployment stress......thank you for the help...i just need to be steered into the right direction as to where to look for help....
Helpful - 0
131817 tn?1209529311
Yuck!  120  tx's of electro shock. OMG.  That' sounds cruel and unusual punishment in prison or out.  How much time is he getting these tx's of shock? and what for? Is he depressed or bipolar? Why is he getting these treatments?  I am very concerned. My son is bipolar and I would never allow this!  If he is in prison, how is he considered addicted....I am missing something here!  My son is/was addicted, in prison and now out after 3 years of Exstacy.  He is now in a half way house and they have him in a job, he looks great. What is going on?  Something just doesn't seem right here....Yeah, I am in CA and you are not, but this guy needs some good medical attention soon! Does he have some Psych disorders you aren't mentioning?  I would sue the hell out of anyone putting my son through 120 shock tx's, even if he is bipolar.  Ugggh.. Maybe I am too close to this to be objective.  Please give us more info to go on...I am really concerned as a mother.
Helpful - 0
264233 tn?1216342315
just read your post b4 mine came up.  if your son is in shock time in mo.  i would call the chaplain at the facility he is in.  i can tell you from experience with prisons in missouri if your son is in iminent danger form medical issues the state is obligated to take care of your son medically.  personally i would wait until your son gets out of his present situation and then look into getting tx when he is released.  in kansas city there is two study programs, one at the veterans administration, and the other is offered at swope memorial center.  if you are not in kc or close then you can do search for hcv study programs by state in google or yahoo and find a study program that might be close to you were you live.  also there are some in here who know of ways to get tx in other waysthru the drug companies.  so hang in there as you see there are many in here to help.
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Avatar universal
i have every intention of getting my son some medical attention as soon as he gets home and believe me i can be the squeaky wheel!!!!!   i am worried sick about him...i was tested this week and i am negative...we need all the prayers we can get...thank you....i don tknow a lot about hep c but i am learning more every day...it is hard to find proper treatment when he has no insurance and the public help isnt willing...we are going to try to get disability...he also has adhd which is a qualifying disability...
Helpful - 0
264233 tn?1216342315
i agree, your son has a right to standard of care in this country and if he is showing the symptoms you describe then he needs to be seen by reputable doctor who is or has more knowledge of liver issues ( hcv )..  a hep specialist or at the least a gi doctor can get your son the best possible chance of getting the right tx.  some of the sides your son is having could be number of things, and my not being a doctor can only suggest your son go to the nearest emergency center to be evaluated and then reffered to the appropriate physician for his symptoms.  i have seen many in the group who are in tx who have just stopped drinking or drugging.  the biggest issue with tx is not using or drinking alcohol while on tx.    please be agressive dealing with the issue you have stated, and always remember the old adage about the squeaking wheel makung all the noise gets fixed first so we dont have to listen to it.

let us know what you find out, and if you have any test results done on your son if you want to post them here you will find there are many in here with more knowledge about this virus who can be of more help to you as they have to all of us in here.

my prayers will be with both you and your son.   :O)
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Avatar universal
we have made several trips to the er for the throwing up blood......thie first time we didnt  know he had hep c....he got his positive diagnosis on his 26th birthday....one time they pumped his stomach to see if there was more blood in his stomach.....there wasnt much....the other times they put ivs in and ran fluid and anti biotics through him.....we have been to 2 different hospitals....the 2nd one told him to not come back unless he can pay the bill.....they cant refuse treatment though.....
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
we are in missouri.....he is prison for 120 shock treatment for his addiction.....he will be home may 8....our local health dept told me that he couldnt have treatment as  has several other sources.......the health dept has a funded program but it is full.....he was also told that his blood pressure is extremely high for his age.....26   ..
Helpful - 0
148588 tn?1465778809
I'd say throwing up blood warrants a trip to the ER immediately. Having an extended period of sobriety before treatment is a separate issue and is a fairly common request by doctors. My gastro asked for 6 months clean and sober.
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Avatar universal
that is a crock! who told you this? they cannot deny someone medical treatment, not even drug addicts or alcholics. please look into this further. where are you located? your son needs med care right away if he is throwing up blood and dark urine! best of luck to him
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