Aa
enzymes are higher than ever & stilll no treatments
found out last visit with GI which was last wk. they took blood and now my enzymes are higher than ever before.I still dont know my #. Havent talked with him again yet .plus as u all know I also have the HCV which was showing possiable small cancer cells.Go back for another test on that next week. which i will have GI fax over blood test.
but for some reason my GI will not start treatments cause now got 2 find another head DR shes opting out of Medicare.holding my fingers back on that. But my GI says I really need to be starting treatments asap. had last blood test in may and now this time alot higher than then. any ideas how bad enzymes going up is. any other ideas helpful!!!!!????? thanks
but for some reason my GI will not start treatments cause now got 2 find another head DR shes opting out of Medicare.holding my fingers back on that. But my GI says I really need to be starting treatments asap. had last blood test in may and now this time alot higher than then. any ideas how bad enzymes going up is. any other ideas helpful!!!!!????? thanks
Hi there, came across your concern while searching for some information on some of the diagnosis my husband has been receiving, one of which is Hep C, genotype 1a. We went to our internist a couple weeks ago and we were also told he has hereditary hemochromatosis. OK, so this is the story...
Several years ago he went in to dr complaining of unusual symptoms like arthritis, extreme fatigue, muscle pains, weakness and the like. Nothing in blood tests showed up. So the dr said. Then about 3 years ago we went to change our life insurance and merge two policies for which he needed a blood test. They came back to us and said he needed to get some attention for elevated liver enzymes. We went to dr. He looked at results and asked if my husband drank. He said well some, but not to a great extent. OK, so come back in a couple months and we'll retest after you don't drink at all. So, no drinks, another test, enzymes still high. Huh? And our family dr was away so we received the results from a fill-in. He said the reason his liver tests came back abnormal was because he had Hep C. WHAT? Oh and it was diagnosed on your file two years ago. OMG. And our dr. never told us! So, we get over that one. Now all the testing begins, appts. ultra-sounds, MRI, cat-scan, we moved, had to get new dr, start all over it seemed, got an internist and more appts, tests, symptoms getting worse, enzymes elevated more...fast forward to two weeks ago...followup with internist for finding our results of geno-type testing so we now where to go with treatment, geno-type 1a, most resistant to treatment, but odds greatly improved in last while with interferon and ribivarin combo. Oh, and by the way...you also have HHC, hereditary hemochromatosis. WHAT IS THAT? Due to a genetic mutation of the HFE gene passed on by one or both parents, you store iron in your body from birth, instead of getting rid of excess iron. All your siblings need to be tested because there is a greater chance they also have the gene responsible for this disease. Ok, get home, start reading...holy moly, lightbulbs start flashing all over. First thing is this...when you punch in elevated liver enzymes, the first thing that comes up for dr.s to check is for hemochromatosis...yes. Elevated liver enzymes is a red flag for underlying disease, and we thought the elevation had to do with the Hep C, along with the other symptoms. But...he had HHC first, which leaves you more prone to not being able to fight infectious bacteria like hep virus, so the chances of you getting hep c are greater when you also have HHC. Following this?
And the damage that is done by this common and rarely diagnosed disease are endless...unexplained vision loss, arthritic symptoms, muscle pain, weakness, mental confusion like dymentia, exhaustion, joint pain, especially in fingers in hands, knees, hips, causes diabetes, heart failure, liver cancer and cirrhosis, pancreatic damage, spleen, erectile dysfunction, lack of libido, and people diagnosed with things like diabetes and heart failure and cancers and fibromyalgia and osteo-arthritis are all candidates for having another underlying systemic cause of these common known ailments that there drs are missing, on a regular basis. This is a disease that is so common it is the most common genetic disorder there is in N America among white people of northern european background, predominantly Irish and Scot, Welsh, Celtic...and elevated liver enzymes are a red flag in this condition to test for HHC right off the bat. Simple blood test. And if iron levels, including ferritin, iron saturation, transferrin and iron serum are higher than normal it can indicate iron overload. And the damage, once a person finally get diagnosed, is very great. Iron stores into joints, organs and tissues, and basically deteriorates your body, causing all the other problems related to affected organs, like the liver, heart, pancreas, pituitary gland, also leading to hypothyroidism and prostate etc. etc. Google it for yourself, I am not trying to exagerate at all...the effects are astounding, and life-threatening if not detected early. Early detection is key.
Anyway, I am spreading the "gospel" now...I am trying to bring as much awareness of this as possible, as my husband is 57 and now has complications from this and hep c that are not reversable but further damage can be prevented. He also has stage 2 cirrhosis, so we found out today, so we are going to get his iron levels down by phlebotomy once a week (blood-letting) and then start the hep c treatments.
That's our story...take care everyone. Hope this might help someone if you have strange symptoms and your dr keeps telling you everything is fine or normal. Oh and a person can be anemic and also be iron-loading. SO dr tells you your iron is too low to have HHC, try and get all the numbers and the right tests.
Several years ago he went in to dr complaining of unusual symptoms like arthritis, extreme fatigue, muscle pains, weakness and the like. Nothing in blood tests showed up. So the dr said. Then about 3 years ago we went to change our life insurance and merge two policies for which he needed a blood test. They came back to us and said he needed to get some attention for elevated liver enzymes. We went to dr. He looked at results and asked if my husband drank. He said well some, but not to a great extent. OK, so come back in a couple months and we'll retest after you don't drink at all. So, no drinks, another test, enzymes still high. Huh? And our family dr was away so we received the results from a fill-in. He said the reason his liver tests came back abnormal was because he had Hep C. WHAT? Oh and it was diagnosed on your file two years ago. OMG. And our dr. never told us! So, we get over that one. Now all the testing begins, appts. ultra-sounds, MRI, cat-scan, we moved, had to get new dr, start all over it seemed, got an internist and more appts, tests, symptoms getting worse, enzymes elevated more...fast forward to two weeks ago...followup with internist for finding our results of geno-type testing so we now where to go with treatment, geno-type 1a, most resistant to treatment, but odds greatly improved in last while with interferon and ribivarin combo. Oh, and by the way...you also have HHC, hereditary hemochromatosis. WHAT IS THAT? Due to a genetic mutation of the HFE gene passed on by one or both parents, you store iron in your body from birth, instead of getting rid of excess iron. All your siblings need to be tested because there is a greater chance they also have the gene responsible for this disease. Ok, get home, start reading...holy moly, lightbulbs start flashing all over. First thing is this...when you punch in elevated liver enzymes, the first thing that comes up for dr.s to check is for hemochromatosis...yes. Elevated liver enzymes is a red flag for underlying disease, and we thought the elevation had to do with the Hep C, along with the other symptoms. But...he had HHC first, which leaves you more prone to not being able to fight infectious bacteria like hep virus, so the chances of you getting hep c are greater when you also have HHC. Following this?
And the damage that is done by this common and rarely diagnosed disease are endless...unexplained vision loss, arthritic symptoms, muscle pain, weakness, mental confusion like dymentia, exhaustion, joint pain, especially in fingers in hands, knees, hips, causes diabetes, heart failure, liver cancer and cirrhosis, pancreatic damage, spleen, erectile dysfunction, lack of libido, and people diagnosed with things like diabetes and heart failure and cancers and fibromyalgia and osteo-arthritis are all candidates for having another underlying systemic cause of these common known ailments that there drs are missing, on a regular basis. This is a disease that is so common it is the most common genetic disorder there is in N America among white people of northern european background, predominantly Irish and Scot, Welsh, Celtic...and elevated liver enzymes are a red flag in this condition to test for HHC right off the bat. Simple blood test. And if iron levels, including ferritin, iron saturation, transferrin and iron serum are higher than normal it can indicate iron overload. And the damage, once a person finally get diagnosed, is very great. Iron stores into joints, organs and tissues, and basically deteriorates your body, causing all the other problems related to affected organs, like the liver, heart, pancreas, pituitary gland, also leading to hypothyroidism and prostate etc. etc. Google it for yourself, I am not trying to exagerate at all...the effects are astounding, and life-threatening if not detected early. Early detection is key.
Anyway, I am spreading the "gospel" now...I am trying to bring as much awareness of this as possible, as my husband is 57 and now has complications from this and hep c that are not reversable but further damage can be prevented. He also has stage 2 cirrhosis, so we found out today, so we are going to get his iron levels down by phlebotomy once a week (blood-letting) and then start the hep c treatments.
That's our story...take care everyone. Hope this might help someone if you have strange symptoms and your dr keeps telling you everything is fine or normal. Oh and a person can be anemic and also be iron-loading. SO dr tells you your iron is too low to have HHC, try and get all the numbers and the right tests.
You are stage 2, grade 2? Elevated liver enzymes could mean a lot of things. It would be better if you could post the numbers when you get them so we can see how much of an increase there has been. Also, it is not unusual for them to fluctuate. Not knowing more about your lifestyle or anything the only thing I can think of with certainty is not to consume alcohol until you clear the virus. Other than that, certain combinations of meds could cause your liver enzymes to fluctuate.
I saddens me how many doctors are opting out of Medicare these days. On the one hand it is understandable since the reimbursement can be abysmal but that is leaving a small pool of doctors who are Medicare Providers :(
Take care and be sure to post when you have your results :)
I saddens me how many doctors are opting out of Medicare these days. On the one hand it is understandable since the reimbursement can be abysmal but that is leaving a small pool of doctors who are Medicare Providers :(
Take care and be sure to post when you have your results :)
Well, rather then reflect on how bad the highly elevated enzymes are (I had that occur also last year), I think it would be more helpful for you to focus on getting on with your Treatment.
Have you had a biopsy yet?
Also, getting rid of your Hep C may also help with your other immune system issues, which will in turn, hopefully help you with fighting the HPV, but I'm no expert with that.
When your liver enzymes are more than twice as elevated as they should be, then this causes inflammation in the liver. As time goes by, this will lead to scarring in your liver, aka fibrosis
Have you had a biopsy yet?
Also, getting rid of your Hep C may also help with your other immune system issues, which will in turn, hopefully help you with fighting the HPV, but I'm no expert with that.
When your liver enzymes are more than twice as elevated as they should be, then this causes inflammation in the liver. As time goes by, this will lead to scarring in your liver, aka fibrosis
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