week 4 test results

[whistler45]

had my week 4 test w/ heptimax (r) hcv rna.  started out w/ 536000 now at 3120 ,<5 IU/ml.  Also 5.73 now at 3.49 <0.70 * log IU/ml.  Are these good results?  What does the second number results (5.73 vs. 3.49) mean anyways?  

Dr. previously told me that basically you should be undetectable at wk 4 and this looks to me like these is still some there.

thanks for your help

[zazza]

Your hemoglobin looks surprisingly good. May I ask, are you male or female?

What you especially want to keep an eye on during tx is hemoglobin, platelets and neutrophils. These counts are generally affected by tx, and it is normal during tx for them to be low. They should just not be too low. Your numbers seem okay for now.

Neutrophils are a kind of white blood cells which help us fight infections.

Keep coming to the forum and you will soon find yourself be an expert on all these matters. And there is always someone here who will know the answer to your questions.

[whistler45]

HI:  
My hemoglobin 12.2 ( w/in range) Hematocrit: 34.5 (sightly low), Platelet: 106 Low, Neutrophils, Absolute: 1137 Low ( what does that measure?) and Eosinophils, Absolute 14 Low.  
All the rest were w/ range.

Thanks

[Deb_c430]

za is right,   HGBS really affect you, My body has somewhat adjusted to lower  HGBs,  even with procrit,     You might hear a drum also in your ears, like a heart beat.   But I tire easily, mine hasn't been up for 11 months, Even with rescue drugs!

But I learn to cope, slow and steady. LOTS of rest!  Good diet!    

Zaza is a whiz at this stuff!  

Best of luck

Deb

[zazza]

What is your hemoglobin level? That is what is interesting. Your body does get used to the treatment, but it is not like you will have a lot of energy, especially not if your hgb is low. My worst weeks were between 5 and 16, after that it seemed my body had adjusted, but I still spent most of my time resting.

Your ribavirin dose is 16.3 mg per kilo, which is a good weight based dose. At least 13-15 mg per kilo is what is generally recommended.

[whistler45]

Thanks so much for the info and speedy explanation of the test results.  My weight is 135 by the way.    Guess I'll just keep plugging till wk 12.  My RBC level is low 2.6.  Do the RBC levels generally drop a lot more?  Trying to walk at least 2 mi 5x a week....and I'm dragging.  Does you body get used to this and stabilize?  

Thanks again.

[Marcia2202]

Thanks for correcting my inaccurate info.

[zazza]

You are doing fine. You have had a 2.24 log drop, which means that you have had more than 99% decrease of your viral load. That is what those numbers, 5.73 and 3.49, say: your viral load in logarithmic form.

A decline of 1 log = 90% decrease
A decline of 2 logs = 99% decrease

As a geno 1, this is our expected response to treatment:

20% are rapid responders (UND by week 4) and have a 90% SVR ("cured") rate.

40% are complete early responders (UND by week 12) and have a 70-80% SVR rate.

20% are slow responders (UND by week 24) and have a 20-30% SVR rate with 48 weeks of treatment. If they extend to 72 weeks tx, they will increase their SVR rate.

20% are non-responders, i e null-responders, breakthrough, partial responders.

I think you have a good shot of becoming UND by week 12, which would give you a 70-80% SVR rate, so I would say you are doing just fine.

Good luck,
Za

[Marcia2202]

Oh, I am asking so we can see, if you are getting enough Ribavirin for your body weight. If you are, you might want to consider upping up the dose anyway, until you get UND.

[Marcia2202]

May I ask what your weight is.

[whistler45]

HI:  I have geno 1-a,   Taking  180 ug  1x wk and 1000mg Ribavirin daily.  Any help welcome.

[Marcia2202]

Welcome to the forum!

Sorry you didn't have that much of a drop. I'm sure you will get a lot of good advice on how to help get undetected from members here.

Could you please state what genotype you are and how much Ribavirin and Peg you are on. It will help people to be able to give you suggestions on how to maybe up your meds.

Also, it is believed that better Riba absorption is achieved by taking the pills with an adequate amount of fat and a meal.

Marcia