24week pcr - results are in......and other posts

[chellski]

Hey all.....fyi:  48yo/fm....type 1....bx 2/2....vl 1.5mil....
showed undetectable <50 at 12 weeks....and ta da....
showed undetectable <50 at 24 weeks.....and whats even wierder is my hgb went up from 11.4 last month to 12.2 - does this normally go up and down???
underneath all the excitement...i still feel like ****....i got my results b/c i was at my primary doc's today(he got copy of bw in) b/c i now have strep throat, ear infection, fever (100.1) and chills.....i spent all day yesterday in bed and now i ache....
time for my pep talk y'all....i'm 1/2way there but sooooo down..
feeling bad cause i cannot do for my kids....and i'm not used to taking care of myself....my girls and i have lived with my parents since my husband died.....i'm supposed to be taking care of them....and my poor 80yo mom is taking girls to their activities and such.....i just feel so bad......
please cheer me up!
michelle

[cuteus]

well looky here! straying away from the feeders? I have not got to read about baby, how is the sweetie?

[dndfunnel]

GREAT NEW'S SWEETHEART-YOUR FRIEND N MATE DEANOXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


    PS HANG IN THERE THINKING OF YA !!!!!!!

[cuteus]

getting confused with all the Dons in this forum, :-}, what genotype are you?

[cuteus]

don't think about shortcuts in your hep c tx. It is only one study each from Roche and Scherring about cutting things short, but there are too many unanswered questions. I would like to know the one yr post tx PCR results and also how many patients were stage 2 and above in that study. There are so many exclusions and inclusion criteria that we don't know about and they are mostly to ensure an uniform set of subjects without the complications of cirrhosis, trasplants, diabetes, etc. Things that can not be controlled and are hard to factor in the results. They want their numbers to be good, and choosing subjects with complications might negatively influence their results. We are not getting a full picture here, only what they want to market, namely, appealing to hep c potential treaters.
I find it suspicious that they release this now, when they should have had similar data back in their first trials to offer us.
they claim low vl is part of the criteria for short tx, but then you get articles like this one that seem to say vl does not matter and 12 wk pcr is more significant than the 4 wk;
http://www.natap.org/2005/HCV/060605_01.htm
you want to do this only once, I hope.

[Dweav]

Good to hear Michelle. It's sound like your hanging in there and doing good though I know it doesn't feel that way some days. Myself am not far for 24 weeks. I'm post transplant and they were saying they wanted to do a 48 week treatment. I have zero since week 12 also. I hopping they stop at 24 but if I have to go down that longer road I'm hopping I can skip down it because the Cure is what we all want.  Glad to see you doing well Hang in there.

Don

48  M
G2 stage 2
Post transplant

[chellski]

I'm in your corner, fighting right behind you!

[ASmile4U]

This time I'm gonna win this battle...once and for all   :)

[Healed24]

Hi, Congrats on your results. Your numbers look amazing, and like the others said your half there, WOO HOO. Unfortunately I'm not that funny so I can't provide you with jokes likes the others, but I can say just keep going and remember this time next year you'll be all done with it. I know your bummed that your Mom has to help you with the kids but I say just be happy that your blessed to have someone in your life to help you. Imagine all the people who don't have their Mommies out there to help them when they need it. Eventhough your going through what your going through, your really blessed. I don't have any kids, but I too have had to rely alot on my Mommy these days. At first I was totally bummed out and I felt bad that here it was I was suppose to helping her and she had to help me that I was so down on myself. Then I looked at the good side and said I'd be screwed if I didn't have her. So just remember you'll be okay, and just bye your Mom a nice big present and I'm sure you and her will both feel better soon.

Brooke
GOD BLESS

[chellski]

p.s.  i'm feeling better.

<3 chelle

[chellski]

nygirl, hca (sorry about ur hgb - i hope U feel better, damitjanet, jmjm (btw: im on amoxycillin), goofy (hey- isn't helium what makes you talk like the munchkins in wiz of oz? i think i like that stuff!), fisheress, wasabipea, hepcinla, aubbie, can i hep u, michaelt, carpedi, healed24:  THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART! for all your good wishes, prayers, positive thoughts, caring, and understanding..........

scruffmeister, mcbean, cutie (you could take eyedea's place w/fri nite fight song!), ying-yang, and califia (jokes very much appreciated!)  my fellow BF's:  again i thank you and love you all so dearly....

my review of my post:  "i laughed, i cried"  **** (4stars)

this is why this place is one of the greatest places i have ever found.  you are all so right i had great news, and my infections will go away (goof - i'm not sure i will ever chuckle about it! lol)

i hope you have all received at some time such a warmth in your hearts from people far and wide who just UNDERSTAND....
when newbies join - they need to know how quickly they can be brought back to the "real world" after getting **** off their chest here.....
ALICE.....YOU'RE THE GREATEST!!!!!
(ok i'm not ralph and ur not alice - but you are all the greatest!!!!)

my love and good wishes and thanks to you all!

they're chasing me off the stage.....

<3 michelle

[GoofyDad]

Ewe (pun intended), the elbow gloves one triggered an involuntarily squeeze.  

OK. My turn.  

Doc's doing his prostate exam when his little exam light blinks out.

Nurse! Get me another lite!

She runs in with a cold can of beer.

No! Make that a Butt Lite!

Little dated. I s'pose you have to be of an age to remember the Miller campaign...

[Fisheress]

Hope you are feeling better today.  Don't forget to get those new toothbrushes! :)

                 God didn't promise days without
                 pain, laughter without sorrow,
                    sun without rain, but
                 He did promise strength for the day,
                    comfort for the tears,
                    and light for the way.

Fisheress

[jmjm530]

LOL.

For me, it's seeing a banjo on the wall.


-- Jim

[MichaelT]

Tips to help you decide when NOT to get the prostate exam:

- The doctor is softly singing the Door's "Back Door Man".

- The doctor manages the say "penetration" 20 times in 5 minutes.

- The doctor nervously tries pickup lines, "uh, come here often?".

- The doctor offers you a drink "just to relax".

- The doctor suggests meeting for lunch first, maybe an afternoon movie.

- The exam gloves aren't regular surgical gloves, but the veterinary elbow-length ones.

- The exam gloves have "pleasure bumps" or "pleasure ribs".

- The exam room is stocked with Jenna Jameson Love Lube instead of KY jelly.

- The exam room lights are off, but there lit candles, roses, and some light jazz playing.

- The nurse offers to sell you a DVD of your visit.

[GoofyDad]

Carpedi - You crack me up. Thanks Froggie :) (PS Maybe you could incorporate one of Sunspot's pressurized tanks - allowing you to adjust on a whim like Pam A does?)

Jim - I like the two-weekly thought.

Asmile - I'm truly sorry you're facing another tx.

Friole - OK - Sister. I'm awake. I'm smelling the coffe. Now where should I put it? But check out the size of that lid. Oh nevermind....

[friole]

Walking a few paltry blocks and not being able to talk?  Come on, get on the procrit train.  I never did get to the 10's yet.  Got to 11.1 last week, and up to 11.7 yesterday but if I drop below 11 I am begging for the procrit. I swear it is less than that some days.   Meanwhile, the ANC is in the toilet --- 500 yesterday. So Neupogen is right around the corner (I think they still have it in the fridge at the pharmacy - it was 11 weeks ago they prescribed it and I begged off to wait and see). Surprisingly, the nurse said wait and get a CBC next Thursday and weekly for awhile.  Meanwhile the nurse said stay out of the mall (no problem  -overdid last weekend, and think I will hide in my house all weekend).

I must go back and look for that helium thread.  Sounds like a great treatment.

[GoofyDad]

Hey Coug,
Jim & I were jabbering about the 02 bars just the other day. Sunspot said he tried 02 from a welding tank :-0 to no great affect. I'm assuming it wasn't lit, but I'm not sure he said either way.

Yeah, on the procrit, that's the dilema, it takes a while to kick in, yet on the otherhand, I'm feeling on the upswing. Friole cruised under 10 for a good while, I think.

Cuteus, I missed your songs before. Thanks :)

[jmjm530]

A lot of people function fine at Hgb 10.6. Your body obviously has ajusted to the lower Hgb levels pretty well. The problem is you're on a declining curve. Potentially, in another couple of weeks you could be in the low 9's, which you still might be able to handle. Taking Procrit now would be a pre-emptive strike in your case.

If you want to wait and play it close to the vest, I'd continue with weekly CBC's and review the results the day after the test.  The compromise in your case might just be to follow standard guidelines -- intevene when Procrit gets below 10. Just be prepared for some potentially rough days and/or dose adjustment if you miscalculate and keep in mind Procrit takes 2-4 weeks to kick in.  The other thing is to ask your doctor how effecive itmight be to start at 20,000 U/wk. or one 40,000 U shot every two weeks.

Re platelets. Mine started over 170 and seem to have flattened around 80-100. Hopefully yours will follow similar pattern.

-- Jim

[carpedi]

I sure hope you're feeling better today! That's great news about your labs, but I know it's hard to feel the elation when you feel like ****. I hope they've given you some good, strong, antibiotics to knock out the strep. I just finished a sinus infection that had me dragging for weeks, in fact the day I got good news at week 4 I could barely manage a smile - all I really wanted to do was quit! It sounds like you have a lot on your plate right now, so I hope you can take it as easy as possible - one day at a time - knock out those nasty bugs, and keep thinking how great you will feel once all this is over.

[carpedi]

I am still contemplating your discussion of oxygen vs. helium for my continuously falling chest problem mentioned in a post a while back. I'm seriously leaning to the helium side - I think a view of life from the ceiling could be quite refreshing at this point. And, since gravity is at the root of my initial problem, this could be just the antidote needed. As for the voice thing...I would definitely be able to attract the attention of those friends and family who've gone through life facinated by the movement of their shoes - they'd HAVE to look up to me! Thanks for the tip, Goofydad! Oh dear, having read what I just wrote, I think I have Riba Rave. And to make matters worse, someone has taken my eyelashes. (Or I have misplaced them). When I made the mistake of looking in the mirror this a.m., it was suddenly evident that one, or both, of my parents might have been a frog. Yes, my hair is falling out, but what a cruel move to take the eyelashes too. (However, we have very high ceilings, so if I do the helium, only those with excellent eyesight will know - yet another plus for the helium side!!)OK, I'm done...where's the nearest balloon store?

[ASmile4U]

Try not to worry too much about your platelets at this point...I had and continue to have issues with platelets.  In the first 4 weeks while I was on tx they went from 186 to 53...remained stable until I stopped tx at 16 weeks...they hung around at 60 or so during those last 12 weeks.  Doc wasn't concerned...said he'd let me go below 50...but told me not to get into any fights with beer bottles...didn't want me to cut myself!  I stopped tx 3 months ago and platelets still haven't recovered, 2 weeks ago they finally went up from 116 to 117...I was excited.  However the doc was not...called me this week and is insisting that I see a hematologist. I need to get them back up so I can begin Infergen tx.  :)

[cougareyes]

I was at 11.3 last bloods, go in next tues. If I go below 11, I'm hitting the procrit. Remember how it takes a couple to three weeks to kick in anyway. You don't already want to be below 10 before starting.
And HEY I'm already brain damaged enough, I need all the oxygen I can get. Does anyone know about these O2 Bars I've seen advertised, I use to think it was bs; but now I think I might need it.  Peace

[GoofyDad]

Michelle, I hope you're feeling a little better, and that you don't mind my jumping into this thread - I didn't want to start a new one on this topic that's "all about me". I addressed this to Jim since we've been discussing procrit elsewhere, but any comments welcome. Who doesn't like some fresh numbers to parse, right?

Weekly labs just in. HGB has gone (15.5, 13, 11.5 10.6) at weeks (0, 2, 3, 4). I have procrit in the fridge, but I feel OK without it. I mean, I don't feel great, but the end of week 2 was the worst, improvement in week 3, and still better in week 4. I can walk a good number of blocks, I just need to not rush and NOT TALK (that one's bitten me twice). Fog has lifted  alot. So, do I tough it out like the iron man that I am (see prev ferritin posts), or get a jump on it and start the procrit now? My obvious priorities in order are are:  make the long haul (48 wks), don't reduce meds, feel better than I do. I don't woory too much about avoiding more drugs, either it's right or it's wrong to start, on it's own merits, IHO.

Next up is Platelets. They continue to drop steadily, with a bigger whack this week: (111, 98, 74) at weeks (0, 3, 4). Week 2 labsheet has temporarily gone missing - I should check in the den I suppose, but I don't have one :). I know they'll take you down to 20 or so on platelets, but at this rate I'll get there PDQ. Can I expect it to level out? What if it doesn't? (I haven't had a chance to ask nurse) BTW, they started scheduling for upper endoscopy (sp?) screening last week at 98.      

ANC is fine with weekly Neupogen begining at wk 2.

AST/ALT are behaving nicely (60/117, 31/39, 27/33) at weeks (0, 3, 4).

All and all I feel pretty good about this, but the platelet trend is a bit worrisome. THanks for listening everyone.

[Can_I_Hep_You?]

Congrats on the great results!!!

dont really have anything funny to say...so I'll just say this..

Stay Strong!

You are doing great!

...and please, don't forget to pray, He will listen.

Psalm 37:5
Commit everything you do to the Lord,
trust Him to help you do it, and He will..

God Bless You and Yours

Michael