Just diagnosed- terrified and alone.

[DayLyn]

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.

[ex-city-slicker]

Hi, I just got DX last week.  I also am terrified and did feel alone until I found others on line. .  I cryed off & on all last week. Have you dicussed TX w/your docotr yet.  What has helped me over the last week , is understanding HEP c is not a death sentence, but it is going to be a battle.  I'll be glad to be part of your support system as I start my journey to battle this V.

DS

[strator]

DayLyn,
Welcome to the forum. You sure are talking about a familiar place, with the fears and the worries in the beginning. We humans should all  put our heads together to come up with a name for that room, where we feel overwhelmed and alone and afraid and uncertain about the future. I

[FlGuy]

Which interferon to use? In the words of William S. "2a or not 2a" or "2b or not 2b".  As you know the are two choices with traditional combo therapy Alpha 2a or Alpha 2b.  Studies that I've read show not appreciable difference in the effectiveness of either.  If you research further you'll see a lot of these studies are sponsored by the drug makers themselves and the people who conduct a lot of the studies are funded by the makers.

I am facing the same choice and don't know what to do. The first time around I used Alpha2b (Shering's).  I got to undetected virus levels and then relapsed after treatment (tx). So I've decided to take a scientic approach to the decision. But, I am undecided even with what scientific approach to use.  But, it will be one of coin tossing, rock-paper-scissors with my self (this one needs more thought), throwing a syringe a a target while blindfolded, or by polling this group (ala Family Feud).  So stay tuned.

One hint, if you are a heavy person (and I don't mean ponderously thoughtful but ponderously large, alpha2B might be for you).  If you are normal size Canadian, it's back to a toss-up.

By the way, love your geese but they **** all over my neighborhood.  Good luck.

[Moniker]

Don't feel too alone; you have this web forum. Maybe you could find a support group in your area. There is a good support group at my VA Hospital in Connecticut. It's a good place to find out more about treatment, and to know that your not alone. There might be a hep c a support group in your area.

I didn't worry about the stigma; I told everybody about my hep c and treatment. I didn't have any problem. People we're nice to me. Maybe it would be wiser to not tell people because if you tell one person, you better expect that everyone will hear about it. Still I told people and nobody seemed to shun me or anything. When I talked about it, I always said that hep c isn't casually contagious, you can only get it from blood transfusion, or if you share a tattoo, or that sort of thing. People gave me a lot of nice support and they still wanted to go out with me, or come over to visit.

Bob

[jmjm530]

Day: and many people are ignorant or uneducated, or both.
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(With my best DeNiro Voice)...."Ya talkin' to me !!!!   :)

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Pegasys or Peg Intron?

Not surprisingly, the studies sponsored by Roache suggest Pegasys and the ones sponsored by Shearing, suggest Peg Intron :)

Probably most people here treat with Pegasys and probably because their doctors recommended it and probably because Roache (makers of Pegasys) have a bigger marketing budget in the States.

Personally, I treated with Pegasys -- successfully I might add -- but from what I've read and heard, to do it all over again (and believe me I have no desire to :) ) I'd probably go with Peg Intron due to the molecule size and some other stuff I really don't understand all that well.

Molecule stuff aside, Peg Intron is dosed per body weight, while Pegasys is dosed the same for all weights. Therefore an argument could be made that if you're on the Twiggy side, you get more drug for the pound (kilo in your case) if you treat with Pegasys. On the other hand, if you're on the heavier side, Peg Intron may make more sense. There's also the issue which drug your medical team has more experience with, however I imagine the managment of both is fairly similar.

Anyway, welcome to the discussion group and try and learn as much as possible before making any decisions.

All the best.

-- Jim

[Sweetie6852]

Join the fridge brigade - someone posted that to me and it made me laugh.  I start today with my first tx. And the PegaInterfuron is in the fridge like the 10,000 lb gorilla.  Again I was petrified when the Dr told me.  It was how could I have that and what is it and how did I get it. The unknown is scarey.  I'm single and high stress job and it's like I'm at the peak of my career and this has to happen now.  But I'll be tougher, more educated, more empathetic to others going through this and I will get through this, but I won't be able to do it alone.  I researched, and learned a lot.  The people you discuss things with here, you think sometimes they read your mind and tell you things you haven't asked yet but were going to. They become your support and you can learn from the experiences.  Everyone here is so helpful, caring and kind.  You need a positive attitude and a will to get better and you will.  Good luck and welcome.