Viral load after the first 4 weeks

[Kranig]

Hallo, my husband has hepatitus C 1b, fibrose 3, and is on he triple treatment (with Incivek) and got the results last week from week 4. It as 35. Now the doctor said he would have to do 1 year treatment in stead of 6 months. He is very upset and wants to stop after 6 months. Are there any people that know if 35 is too much? He had many millions before, so it sounds to me very good???

[BoceprevirGal]

  Well, of course, I understand why your husband is very upset and dissapointed about the 48 weeks.
   But I think it would be a good idea for us to focus on some positives
for him:  after his 12 weeks of Incivek are over, he will only be doing the Interferon shot and the riba pills.  Many people (including myself, I did just those meds, for my first 4 weeks of Tx, as a "lead in" to my Victrelis regiment) find that after the bad side effects of the Incivek wear off, that the Interferon and the ribaviran are fairly easy to live with, in terms of side effects.
   I rarely get any ill side-effects, from my Interferon any more, now that I am at 22 weeks. Instead of your husband thinking of a whole year, it might be easier for him to take it one day, and one week, at a time.
    

[hilda4guitars]

Hi! What a great advise you gave...just to take it one day at a time, a week at a time and so on....

[Kranig]

yes - indeed...one day at a time - and one mood at a time I guess. It must be changing all the time

[nan535]

Unfortunately my husband who had ESLD had to stop the treatment after Week 5. Though it was extremely difficult, we were so disappointed that he was unable to continue. Our thoughts were that we needed to do everything we could to get rid of this insidious virus before it caused cancer which would possibly make him ineligible for a transplant.  The story does have a happier ending.   He remained "unquantifiable" for 8 months after stopping treatment. Though we recently learned the virus is now back, he did get his transplant and is doing great.  The fight against the virus will continue someday in the future  but at least he will have leveled the playing field now that he has a healthy liver.

So my advice to your husband is hang in there. Complete the treatment however long it takes. SVR will be so worth everything he has gone through.  It may prevent him from one day needing a liver transplant or getting liver cancer.  Keep your eyes on the prize!

[Advocate1955]

I agree with the posters above.  Many hepatologists are treating stage 3 like stage 4 with regard to length of treatment time with the PIs.  So many people with stage 3 are doing 48 weeks instead of 24 weeks anyway, due to the possibility of Cirrhosis.  So, he is in it for the long haul, but it is for the best with or without the UND at week 4.  Staying on treatment for 48 weeks will increase his chances of SVR.  If he were to stop treatment early and then have a relapse, it is likely that he would not be able to treat again with a PI, which would mean he would not be able to treat again until there are new treatment options in 2-5 years.  Given that he is already stage 3, he could develop Cirrhosis in that period of time, which is not good.
My advice:  do whatever you have to do to keep him on the 48 week course of treatment.  Remind him that he is lucky that he is able to treat, as there are many who have exhausted all treatment options and have no choice but to wait.  Remind him that he will indeed feel better when he finishes Incivek.  Make sure he's drinking plenty of water, and if possible, walking outside for a few minutes every day.  If he gets a rash or has signs of anemia, call his doc right away so that these side effects can be managed before they get worse.  These are things that will help him stay on treatment for the full 48 weeks.
Advocate1955

[Advocate1955]

PS:  He will very likely be UND with his week 8 results, and that will also help him feel more optimistic.
Advocate1955