Triple Therapy questions

Question

I start Triple Therapy tomorrow and I am absoluteky TERRIFIED!!! Im only 26 but have an infant and 4 year old and while medicaid is gonna pay for my meds I figure I better jump on it! Im taking the following medicines:

Ribavirin 200mg tablet, INCIVEK 375mg tablet, & Pegintron Redipen 120mcg

My nurse said first few shots would be rough but I read this not to be true, that they get worse and worse the further u go along!! Im nervous since I have a 2 month old and 4 yr old about having no energy and so on! Any advice about this treatment and what is ahead?? Id greatly appreciate it!!

Advocate1955 · Answer

If your doctor isn't very experienced in treating with triple tx, it will be very important for you to post here frequently and ask us questions frequently.  His lack of experience may mean that he may not address your side effects quickly or efficiently, which could impact your ability to get through treatment.  So ask us a lot of questions about side effects so we can help you get a handle on them quickly.  Some remedies are over the counter items you or a family member can buy, some remedies are prescriptions that your doc may not think about and you may have to assertively ask for.
Best of luck.  It may be a bumpy road, but take it one day at a time, and don't give up!
Advocate1955

skiyaltr · Answer

There are many very caring and knowledgeable people that have been and are travelling the road you are on.  I am 35 weeks of triple with incivek.  Search the forum for questions and answers; use this as a tool; there will be some degree of side effects and you want to be prepared to manage them.

Drink lots of water, don't miss any doses, watch for the incivek rash.

Good luck on your journey.

working dog · Answer

i wish i had understood anemia before tx...as well as rescue dugs...i was lucky to have help at home.....you may not have bad symptoms....my first shot was the worse shot as far as fever....but tx goes on for a while and symptoms change...burning butt stopped for me at 3 to 4 weeks into tx....make sure to talk with your doctor about tx....also tell the folks close to you that tx can be tough mentally...and that you may react to things different then you do normally....say things you don't really mean....get cbcs at least once a week for the first few weeks and longer if needed....keep an eye on your blood work and ask questions here...some folks on this fourm know an awful lot and others like me at least know what we went through...i hope you take your incivek on time and don't miss any doses...i needed a pill organizer to keep things straight....good luck.....billy

pooh55811 · Answer

Thanks for correcting my error on the Incivek doing. 

Yes, I took Incivek 750 mg (two  375 mg pills)  every 8 hours (so three times a day).

I must keep blocking that out because this is not the first time I have made that error. Or maybe it is just Brain Fog, LOL.

FrontRangeMom · Answer

Thanks for pointing out my error on the interferon ID. The package insert does not specify, however the clinical trials for incivek  were conducted with Pegasys.

willbb · Answer

You have been given good advice above regarding dosing.

Not every one experiences severe side effects and there are many members here who can help you with those that do crop up..

Best of luck and  welcome to the zoo..

Will

hrsepwrguy · Answer

TABLE 1 Recommended Pegintron Combination Therapy Dosing (Adults)
Amount of Pegintron (mcg) to Administer
Body weight kg (lbs)
61 – 65 kg
(134 – 144) lbs
120 mcg per 0.5 mL

http://www.drugs.com/pro/pegintron.html

Incivek can be used with either pegintron or pegasys and ribavirin

INCIVEK must be administered with both peginterferon alfa and ribavirin for all patients for 12 weeks, followed by a response-guided regimen of either 12 or 36 additional weeks of peginterferon alfa and ribavirin

http://pi.vrtx.com/files/uspi_telaprevir.pdf

coraggio · Answer

Side note:  Take the Incivek doses 7-9 hrs apart with a minimum of 20 grams of fat.  Adequate fat intake increases the efficacy of the Incivek and it is very important that you comply.

coraggio · Answer

Incivek is (2) 375 mg tabs three times a day total of 6 tabs daily.

FrontRangeMom · Answer

I thought Incivek was used with Pegasys, not Pegintron. My hepatologist didn't weight base it, full syringe each week. Also isn't Incivek 3 x per day, two capsules every 8 hours? Make sure you are using the right drugs and the right dosing schedule. Also Incivek requires that you take it with 20 grams of fat.

pooh55811 · Answer

It is great that you have a good support system in place. You may not have a lot of side effects, but there is no way to guarantee that. I agree with Grammy, at least realize and be prepared that some of the side effects could be debilitating. If someone can help you with the kids, that would help a great deal.

FIGuy  makes a very good point. Be sure you are on the correct dosages for your weight. Too low of a dose may result in treatment failure.

Incivek is 375 mg tabs 2 tabs twice a day (total 4 per day) regardless of weight.

Ribavirin according to patient weight:
Less than 75 kg: 1000 mg/day orally in 2 divided doses for 48 weeks
75 kg or more: 1200 mg/day orally in 2 divided doses for 48 weeks

Interferon according tom weight:
The recommended dose of PegIntron is 1.5 mcg/kg/week. 

See Table in this article:

http://www.drugs.com/dosage/pegintron.html


If you have side effects or problems, please post and we will respond with answers and remedies.  Best of luck.

jules2551 · Answer

& Pegintron Redipen 120mcg ?

Are you seeing a Hepatologist?  If not you should be.

Jules

FlGuy · Answer

You have good reason to be scared.  You wrote "Ribavirin 200mg tablet..."  Just so you you know, it's probably 4 or 5 of those per day not just one.  That's based on the amount of Peg your're getting they are both weight-based doses. Ribavirin causes birth defects. That's why Doc was insistent about pregnancy.

kam_lukesmom · Answer

Thanks so much for your advice!! Thankfully my support system is awesome!! My doctor is a true idiot though! I am from a small town and Im only the 3rd patient he has treated withy this triple therapy!! I hope ur journey gets much better! It seems like the treatment is working foru since you r on week 7 u made it past week 4!! Good luck with everything

GrammyA · Answer

You have asked a true "can o' worms" question.  I believe in prepare for the worst then everything better then that is a blessing.  I also hope you have a support system in place for that potential worse situation.  Husband, partner, family or friends very close by.... it is important.  All the people on here have had different experiences with the treatment.  They can tell you individual horror stories and many say they felt no different.  I too wish there was a crystal ball for what lies ahead.  I am in my 7th week of this treatment and have only been able to function out of bed about 5 of those days due to all the side effects.  DO NOT white wash the warnings of what might happen to your body and prep for that as the potential, especially when the safety of your babies is also at stake.
Wishing you much strength and healing to success!