went doc yesterday

[kel59]

doc said i had 1A with vl of 2.4 mil he said i could take infergen & riba but he said i should take a shoot a day instead of 1 a week any thoughts on weather i should 1 aday or 1 a week he left it up to me what do yall think?

[kel59]

i have had liver bx came back level 3 stage 3 brigeing fibrosis

[Algernon]

Go get a second opinion.  My VL was 16.5 million.  I'm on the regular interferon 1 x week/ribavirin routine.  I think that's the norm for first time treatment.

[felinesrme]

I'm a 1B with a vl of 1.2 mil with stage 3/3.  My doctor who is a hep dr, recommended we start with combo first.  I am under the impression that infergen is suggessted when other tx's may have failed.  You may want to get a second opinion.  Please note, no one here is a doctor and we cannot give advise, simply suggestions based on own experiences.

[cuteus]

my first hepatologist offered me the same options, any med that I wanted for hep c, be it pegylated or not(infergen, consensus interferon) if that is what I wanted. There is no set guidelines, each doctor leaves(or should) it up to the patient to decide, after explaining each option and the possible sides. I chose Pegasys, but that is because I did not know how well consensus seemed to work on geno one. I might have done that first, or so I felt after not being undetected at wk 12. Or maybe not, knowing that sides seemed easier on Pegasys and I wanted to continue working full time. You have a good dr, if he/she has left it up to you to decide, but if he did not explain how each might affect you, that takes point off his report card.
good luck on your choice

[bobbyullc]

2.5 MILLION IS NOT THAT HIGH.
PEG/INTERFERON IS THE LONG LASTING DRUG THAT REPLACED REGULAR INTERFERON.
I THINK YOU MAY HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF SVR WITH ONE A DAY SHOTS AND WITH YOUR LIVER STAGE YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER THAT.
CHECK THIS ARTICAL.
http://www.natap.org/2004/DDW/ddw_04.htm
GOOD LUCK
BOBBY

[GoofyDad]

Secondary to genotype, high viral load is a negative predictor of outcome. So is advanced fibrosis progression. Being male, African American, or overweight are also negative predictors.

We've had at least one other member here who started on Infergen Combo therapy. It's possible that more agressive Docs are starting to lean that way for tougher to treat cases?