Aa
Just diagnosed- terrified and alone.
I was just recently diagnosed - March 2006. 1a. In BC, Canada.
I've finally gotten the courage to post, but have been reading posts here for weeks.
I feel alone in this - the stigma is great, and many people are ignorant or uneducated, or both.
I'm being screened for treatment next Tues.
My question was - Pegasys or Peginteron? Any opinions or suggestions would be welcome.
I've finally gotten the courage to post, but have been reading posts here for weeks.
I feel alone in this - the stigma is great, and many people are ignorant or uneducated, or both.
I'm being screened for treatment next Tues.
My question was - Pegasys or Peginteron? Any opinions or suggestions would be welcome.
What an excellent post from Couchpotato, really, does it matter what other people think in the long run? The way I look at it, they don't pay my car payments or rent, or even care about me one way or another after 2 minutes of consideration....if they are not friends or family.....so why the h@ll should we care what strangers think about us for having this? Unless we are going to get active and ralley for ourselves...
What I can't stand is every once in awhile, I beat *myself* up for having this, why did I hang out with those kids way back when? Why was I so stupid? ...such wasted energy, as if beating myself up now for things I did in the past would do me any good "now" whatsoever...Best we can do is go into a certain amount of acceptence and do whatever we need to do, now, to deal with this...get the best docs, everything we need to do as far as testing procedures, etc....
Daylyn: of course this is easier said then done, and so many people do it, but I hope you can be as positive as you can be under the circumstances...and not do a six month freak out like I did, where I just sat around and thought it would be the END of me...cause that was 5 years ago now and I'm still tickin...for myself, positive media in the form of funny movies and books, and counseling and meditation helped tremendously to get me out of that slug like state after diagnosis...be well...
What I can't stand is every once in awhile, I beat *myself* up for having this, why did I hang out with those kids way back when? Why was I so stupid? ...such wasted energy, as if beating myself up now for things I did in the past would do me any good "now" whatsoever...Best we can do is go into a certain amount of acceptence and do whatever we need to do, now, to deal with this...get the best docs, everything we need to do as far as testing procedures, etc....
Daylyn: of course this is easier said then done, and so many people do it, but I hope you can be as positive as you can be under the circumstances...and not do a six month freak out like I did, where I just sat around and thought it would be the END of me...cause that was 5 years ago now and I'm still tickin...for myself, positive media in the form of funny movies and books, and counseling and meditation helped tremendously to get me out of that slug like state after diagnosis...be well...
Kind of depends on weight. Pegintron is weight based so some doctors prefer it for larger people. Pegasys is same dose regardless of weight. Statistically there is little difference. Pegintron is available both in redipen and as powder you self mix. If you travel a lot the powder is the way to go as it does not need to be kept in the fridge. I preferred the powder, hated the redipen 'cause I found it awkward to hold and didn't trust it. But I think almost everyone else in the world likes the redipen better. Unsure if pegasys is available in powdered form or not.
Best of luck.
Doug
Best of luck.
Doug
Welcome to this forum, and I am sorry for your diagnosis. We were all where you are at one time, so you are not alone among us. As TravisB said, try to remember that most people die WITH Hep C, not from it. I know there are some, so I do not mean to minimize the seriousness of the virus, but just want to provide some perspective. As for the treatment options, I have heard different things about whether or not one is better than the other, but I don't think any of it is proven, I did 48 weeks on Pegasys w/ few side effects and am approaching my 6 month post PCR and hope/pray I am still negative. Keep us informed as you learn more about your status.
Lauren
Lauren
First of all welcome, I think you've come to a good place for help and support.
Many of us are at or have been where you are at. Some, like myself, struggled through the initial stages of diagnosis, biopsy, beginning tx without knowledge and alone. IMHO having been ther done that, you're fortunate to not have go that route.
As for your questions, I think you would find a variety of opinions and an equal number of studies for and against one treatment over the other. Few, if any have actually done head to head studies for these treatments, and the one I am aware of was largely funded and heavily staffed by one of the companies which produces the recommend treatment (imagine that).
Personally, I am on the Pegasys/Riba and also like the preloaded syringes. I've never had to mix a formula, so am not familiar with how easy or complicated that can be. Having been one of those bad IVDU for a short time 30 years ago in my youth, which is where I probably contracted this insidious disease (shame on me for playing a possible part in the stigma, but I never reached the point of having track marks and physical atrophy) and a breeder/exhibitor of dogs who vaccinated my own dogs, I never was bothered by the thought of SQ injections. Couple that with my recent experiences of having to draw Procrit and Neupogen from multiple vials (more than I care to count these days), I don't think I would be hampered by having to mix and injection like PegIntron requires.
My suggestion would be to go with the treatment your doc is most familar and comfortable with you using. That way he/she will be more on top of your treatment should to become more complicated, as it seems many Geno 1's tend to do.
Many of us are at or have been where you are at. Some, like myself, struggled through the initial stages of diagnosis, biopsy, beginning tx without knowledge and alone. IMHO having been ther done that, you're fortunate to not have go that route.
As for your questions, I think you would find a variety of opinions and an equal number of studies for and against one treatment over the other. Few, if any have actually done head to head studies for these treatments, and the one I am aware of was largely funded and heavily staffed by one of the companies which produces the recommend treatment (imagine that).
Personally, I am on the Pegasys/Riba and also like the preloaded syringes. I've never had to mix a formula, so am not familiar with how easy or complicated that can be. Having been one of those bad IVDU for a short time 30 years ago in my youth, which is where I probably contracted this insidious disease (shame on me for playing a possible part in the stigma, but I never reached the point of having track marks and physical atrophy) and a breeder/exhibitor of dogs who vaccinated my own dogs, I never was bothered by the thought of SQ injections. Couple that with my recent experiences of having to draw Procrit and Neupogen from multiple vials (more than I care to count these days), I don't think I would be hampered by having to mix and injection like PegIntron requires.
My suggestion would be to go with the treatment your doc is most familar and comfortable with you using. That way he/she will be more on top of your treatment should to become more complicated, as it seems many Geno 1's tend to do.
Hello there. Do come and join us when you need to. We all have been where you are now at one time or another. It is scary. I too found out in March. I think I cried for 2 weeks. Now I realize I can live but have to do the nasty treatments. Hopefully you have some support where you are. I have told very few and mostly my family. They are all supportive and that has been so great. I have a tendancy to hide things and go it alone so this is a whole new approach for me. ANyway have you had any of the tests yet? I am geno 2 stage 2-3 and grade 2-3. I start treatment Sept 29th.
Welcome to the forum, and just know you'll never be alone here. You'll find a lot for support and knowledge on this forum, from people who care.
Hang in there and let us know how you make out.
Beagle
Hang in there and let us know how you make out.
Beagle
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