biopsy results

[britt505]

My biopsy results came back 2 on a scale of 0-4. Should I take treatment? I feel fine and have a 3 year old at home and a regular 8-5 job. I am 55. I am subject to depression.

[willows]

Whenever someone asks about taking treatment....I always get a little crazy.  With a stage/grade of two...you are right in the middle.  You have a while...yet you are like me and at 50+, waiting is sometimes not a good thing.  But by 2010 you should be able to try a combo tx with telaprevir and the two years you would wait is not that long in Hep C years.  Treatment is fairly hard to do for most folks...took me about two years to recover and I didn't even clear the virus.  

Wow, what a hard question for anyone to answer.  Just know that in my opinion...for what that is worth...treatment is so damn hard...I would and will wait until I can add a third drug to the whole mix.  If I gotta go thru it..I want to optimize my chances.

Good luck on your decision, let us know.   With your depression I would go straight to the doc and start some really good anti dees before I began treatment.  too many folks get a few weeks into treatment and then decide to go on anti depressants.  Makes the whole experience even crazier.  Take care of yourself.

Willow

[britt505]

what is a combo tx?

[DB 0]

Your geno type 1a or 1b means 48 weeks now,maybe like willow says 2010 third drug may mean 24 weeks and better odds.Type 2 or 3, 24 weeks and good odds now.I was 55 type 1 stage 2 and 2.Worked through 48,but it wasn't easy.A 3 yr old at home would be another consideration.

[alagirl]

combo treatment means the ribavirin / interferon treatment, which is the standard of care for anyone doing tx for the first time.

Also, to answer your other question, my feeling on tx is why wait and do it after your liver is more damaged instead of doing it when your liver is less damaged?  also, your damage can go from 2 to serious fairly quickly sometimes.  It's kind of freakish how that happens to people but it does.  

Additionally, hep c can and does damage the kidneys and causes other issues for people too.  So you have to see if you are willing to take that risk as well, and I would get your kidney functions checked too (knowing that you can have damage and normal functions sometimes).

So tx is up to you and your doctor, but those are some factors to consider and to ask your doc about.

[jmjm530]

I'm with "Willows" here. Newer drugs in trial are showing better results in half the time. And while not treating Hep C has risks, treatment has its own set of risks. Everything being equal, if I were a stage 2, I would not treat now. Best advice is to try and learn as much as you can about HCV and available treatments. You will get the pros and cons and can then come to your own decision. You also might want to spend several hours -- better several days (not several minutes) back reading posts here to get a better idea of some issues involved. I successfully treated a couple of years ago when  told I was between stage 3 and 4. Certainly not advising anyone to wait that long, but had to do it all over again, in spite of my SVR (cure) would not have treated if told I was a stage 2 back then.

-- Jim

[rita863]

I am Geno 1 Phase 2 damage, 44 years old i am in 29th week of treatment, cleared at 12.  i was not test at 4, so will remain unknow,  i work full time.  I do have some sides. sometimes very mangebale other times they are a little worse.  My feeling is i have never been healthier, so if i hadnt cleared in 12 weeks i would have stopped and waited for the newer drugs to be approved.  I also look at it like giving up 1 year now and not waiting until i am older.

As Jim says it is a personal decision.  I just wanted to get started, hopefully clear it and achiever SVR.  and but this behind me.


Good luck
peace
rita