Your Best Friend's Guide to Hep C

How Long Does it Take with Hepatitis C Treatment  How Long Does it Take with Hepatitis C Treatment - Sometimes while you are on treatment, it feels like you are a little kid in the back seat of the car on a very long trip. You cannot see out of the window without sitting on your feet. You are squashed up with your brothers or sisters. If you are like me, you had to go the bathroom. Some of those trips were to special places like the lake, grandma and grandpa’s house, shopping at TG&Y, or to the park. Car trips take forever when you are young. It seems like Hepatitis C Treatment goes on forever too, doesn’t it? You may feel trapped in the back seat of a very long car trip. It can be downright frustrating. Sometimes you just want to climb out of the window. Impatience grows with every mile. But you are stuck. And probably asking a lot of questions. You deserve some answers, but they do not always come as quickly as you would like. These 5 little words, How L...

  Starting Hepatitis C Treatment Two years ago this week I was starting Hepatitis C Treatment. July 15 to be exact. The Protease Inhibitors had just been released. At that time, there was a lot of uncertainty about their use for those with cirrhosis. I was scared and thrilled. I have talked to you a lot about what to expect while sharing my experiences. Now that a year has passed since my treatment is over - and the drugs are out of my system, I am able to put it in perspective with much more mental clarity. If I were starting Hepatitis C Treatment this week, what would I most need to hear? I am going to pretend that you are with me now. Knee to knee, eye to eye, heart to heart, hand in hand. I have a few things to say to you dear friend. Get closer. We've gotta talk. Create inner space for yourself. I know that so many things have to be attended to. There are lists upon lists that have doctors notes, lab results, housekeeping chores, and medications to refi...

A three-step strategy for hepatitis C diagnosis

I have a website at  http://www.ihelpc.com/ where I blog frequently. Please visit me there for tons of information, support, and information regarding the Hepatitis C Virus. Until I can figure out how to export those files here.... I hope to meet you there. My best to you. Karen:)

So, you discovered that you have the virus. Most people who have tested positive for hepatitis C are offered the option to treat. In the past, the options were few and offered very low statistics regarding sustained viral response (SVR). It usually consists of Ribavirin in pill form and Interferon injections. In 2011, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of protease inhibitors. This totally changed all the rules of the game. Finally the odds were in the patients favor! There are two major brand names of protease inhibitors. One brand name is Incivik, which is the drug Telaprivir. The other is Victrelis, which is the drug Boceprevir.  By adding a 3 rd medication to the treatment that was already in place, patients were able to boost the ability to rid themselves of the virus. The good news is that once you have reached a sustained viral response for a length of time, the virus is actually gone. It is not in remission. It is gone!!! I remember hearing tho...

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