Options for next round of tx

[NorthIdaho54]

For those of you that went through a 2nd round of tx with a different interferon, I'm curious as to which interferon you chose and why.

A wk after ending my tx (wk 9) my labs showed VL @ 4.6 log (from 5.2 log previous month).

Obviously the peginterferon alfa 2a/riba was not working for me.

Any suggestions? -Rhonda

[Interfurgen]

BORN IN SOUTHEASTERN 61 any way peg also did not work i did interfergen 5 ul shots every night not fun

[burned74]

Hi Bill

I see where you treated for 56 weeks. I was wondering wht your dose was?

[eureka254]

My husband did have a 2 log drop at week 4, so when given all the options at 48 and 72 weeks, he chose to extend... he didn't much relish the idea of daily shots.  He's in an usual situation and has pretty progressive docs, so I don't know if much of his personal experience is relevant to you, but hope that helps some.

[Bill1954]

Both Pegintron (by Merck, previously Schering-Plough) and Pegasys are injected weekly, Rhonda. Infergen, however isn’t pegylated, and requires more frequent dosing. It’s now usually ordered as a daily injection and taken in combination with ribavirin like the other two are.

As far as I know, most, if not all studies involving protease inhibitors have been performed with either Pegintron or Pegasys; so if you plan to retreat with a PI in the future, it will likely include on of the above, and not Infergen.

--Bill

[NorthIdaho54]

Bill  -  Pegintron, was it a daily injection or weekly? "Off label dose" meaning increased dose?

Eureka  - My GT is 1b and I have already decided to include Telaprevir since my HBG levels declined so rapidly during tx. (I've read that Bece tends to lower HBG levels although I could have interpreted that wrong) So your husband chose to extended tx on peginterferon/riba rather than switching?

Rhonda

[eureka254]

Hi Rhonda:

When discussing the possibility of a 2nd treatment in case of relapse, my husband's doc discussed the possibility of switching to Infergen (aka consensus Interferon, administered daily), but hubby chose to extend instead. Depending on your genotype, the anticipated release of Tela/Boce may be a worthwhile consideration; there are a number of folks who treated multiple times and were successful on a 2nd or 3rd (or later tries), and hopefully they'll pop in to share their experiences. ~eureka

[Bill1954]

My previous experience was an unsuccessful initial tryst with Pegasys. After relapse, my GI doc insisted I take a referral to a large hepatology transplant and research clinic.

As a relapser, I assumed I was going to start again with Infergen, which is FDA labeled for this purpose. The new doc said that while he’d certainly prescribe Infergen, his experience was such that it wasn’t that effective. Without delving in to the mechanics of the meds, he suggested I try switching to Pegintron. I also used off label dose and duration, but the difference in response was remarkable. I had a much improved initial response, clearing the second time between weeks 4 and 8.

I’m not sure how much this info is worth, given the likelihood of upcoming changes in treatment protocol; that was my experience though.

Good luck—

Bill