so, not one of 25% club

[1oftheclub222]

Well, My doctor just sent me an e-mail, said i do have a viral load.  Not sure how high yet, I have to go and pick up the results to see.  Well, it will take me a minute to digest this...

So a VL of less than 1 million means there might be an easier chance of SVR when you do treatment?  Also how much damage is done to the liver, confirmed by a biopsy?

[pooh55811]

Sorry to hear that you do, in fact, have a viral load and active Hep C. However, don't worry too much and don't dispair. The new triple treatment (if you are Genotype 1) seems to have a fairly high response rate. If you are Genotype 2, you have even a greater chance of clearing the virus, and with only 2 drugs, not 3.

I am Genotype 1 with a viral load of 14,400,000. (Yep, 14.4 million). There are people on this forum who have had viral loads as high as they count them (over 69,000,000 I think, I could be wrong on that number). My biopsy shows Stage 2, Grade 2. I started triple med treatment on September 26, 2011 (with Incivek). At 4 weeks I was detectable but below 43. At 8 weeks I was undetectable. I am in my 10th week and will recheck at 12 weeks. Others on this forum have had higher viral loads and still reached SVR.

Try to stay optimistic and hopefully you will also reach SVR. (And maybe you have no damage or very little damage, which would be great.) I wish you luck!

[Bill1954]

From memory, there are commercial viral load assays that have an upper limit of quantification of 50,000,000 IU/mL. We now use International Units per Milliliter almost universally as a unit of measure as opposed to the old ‘copies/milliliter’.

The new cut off for low viral load is generally accepted as <400,000 IU/mL:

http://www.natap.org/2007/EASL/EASL_41.htm

Previously there was some possible value to low viral load as an indicator of response; I’m not sure if that is still valid given the inclusion of newer, more effective treatment drugs. Regardless, HCV genotype trumps all other factors in regard to treatment response.

No, the HCV RNA by PCR Quant test is also known as a ‘viral load’ test; biopsy samples are taken for pathology to determine the extent of fibrosis and other issues, but not viral load. Different viral load tests have different limits of detection.

Sorry to hear of your recent diagnosis, by the way and welcome to the discussion group,

--Bill

[orphanedhawk]

Viral load has nothing to do with liver damage.
Viral loads just show us during treatment how well its working.

When I was first diagnosed I already had decompensated cirrhosis but my viral load was only 750,000.
My husband had a  much higher viral load and no damage at all.

Less liver damage means treatment is often easier.
A biopsy will show the amount of liver damage.

[hrsepwrguy]

Also meant to say sorry to hear the news that you were confirmed to have hep, I wish you all the best moving foward.

[hrsepwrguy]

So the results only go up to 1,000,000?  I had seen some people talk of being as high 10 or 15,000,000...is there another test that checks that?  or do they get that from the biopsy?

Most standard PCR test go up to 69 mill and it is checked with the PCR test not the biopsy

[1oftheclub222]

Oh, I don't know what the results say yet, I kind of just want to leave work and go get them and see, actually I want to throw up, then cry, but no time for that...

So the results only go up to 1,000,000?  I had seen some people talk of being as high 10 or 15,000,000...is there another test that checks that?  or do they get that from the biopsy?

[bamabred]

Hey,first you need a biopsy to find out damage if any,my last viral load was 850.000 that was as high as they go,850,000 of 1,000,000 p.p.m.,parts per million get it.so mine was over 3/4 of the max,also they stop at 850,000 for some reason,hope this helps you.