A plug

You know, now that I have officially attained SVR and am essentially cured, I can do my obligatory Big Pharma plug.

To wit: I have seen people on Hep C boards who have had a serious adverse reaction to incivek, had to discontinue treatment and are now quite understandably pissed off. But their anger goes overboard. They say things like "incivek should have been black-boxed from the beginning" and even "it should never have been allowed on the market".

I can respond to that in a rude and a polite manner.

Rudely, and simply: bullshit.

Politely, and with consideration for them: a medicine is black-boxed if there are deaths associated with it, and there have been none until several months ago. I also suspect that the deaths in question resulted from people continuing treatment even in the presence of some horrid adverse reactions. It sucks: ultimately, nobody is to blame for the side-effects; we are all victims of genetic lottery. I feel sorry for those who had to discontinue treatment, but why would they want to deny it to others? It has worked for many, including myself, after all. Spite? Jealousy? Blech.

So yes, I am officially plugging incivek here. Yes, it is a dangerous drug with nasty side-effects. yes, you may be unlucky and have a nasty adverse reaction (I will probably have the scars from medication rashes on my elbows for the rest of my life--and that was a "mild" reaction)--in which case, stop the treatment immediately! And yes, you may be unlucky and have a strain of virus that is resistant to it. But 4 out of 5 chances, on average, are better than none.

Stop holding your breath.

If I told you you had a beautiful body, would you hold it against me? I am no longer infected!

Yes, the final results are back and the damn things are apparently gone from my body. Some damage to the liver has been done, of course, both by the virus, and, I suspect, by the treatment, so i can no longer drink like I used to. But then again, a handle of bourbon a day is not really recommended for anyone!

Would you like to come to my place....bouncy bouncy? One drink cover.

It's beginning to...

I waited for a few days after my cidery Saturday to go and have blood drawn for the last batch. So far, everything except for the viral counts (the most important one) is back and is normal. Of special importance are liver enzymes: perfectly fine. I guess I'll have to wait until Monday or so to find out the final results. I will hold my breath and sit in the corner, building up blood pressure and popping capillaries. On second thought, I'll have a drink of dry cider.

Interferon problems

I certainly hope I won't have to do this. My final tests are next week; everyone pls to hold their breath. I certainly am.
Chronic hepatitis C: Interferon may be harmful in re-treatment