Can I live without treatment

[Jim]

Hi,
I am newly diagnosed and have heard that most people die with the hep c  not from it. Is this true and will I be ok with a change to a healthy life style? I am afraid to do the treatment as I have a lot of very serious issues that I have to work thru. I am 54 yrs old and have had this 1a hep c for about 30 yrs and I feel fine and in good health even after being a heavy drinker all my life and having a bit of a fatty liver.
Looking for an alternavite to the heavy treatment.
Jim

[keith]

Hi Jim, your correct when you say most people die with hep c not from it. What you really need first is a liver biopsy. Its the only way to know how good or bad your liver is and then you can make the decision to treat or not
     keith

[DougV]

It is true most die with hep and not because of it.  However that is misleading.  Those with hep c die almost 20 years sooner than there counterparts.  They may die of heart, kidney, diabetic issues, skin breakdown allowing sepsis, lung problems, intestinal issues and so on.  Catch is the liver has 500 functions and these functions can effect all of the things I just mentioned.  And for those who do die of liver failure, it is not pretty.  For example my step brother in law died of portal vein failure.  He stood up when suddenly blood began pouring from every orifice in his body, including eyes, ears, anus, and penis. 

In the hospital I have had patients from 40 to 84 dying of liver failure, most in their 50's.  (not a lot of patients, maybe dozen, so not claiming this is representative, just what I've seen.)

I quit drinking over 15 years ago, do not have a fatty liver, but do have some cirrhosis.  Also have no symptoms.  Most often by the time you do, won't be much left to do except transplant and that only if you meet the criteria.

Certainly a healthy lifestyle can help, no drinking, no smoking, good diet and nutrition, exercise, keeping body mass at or really close to recommended levels.  Are you really prepared to make these kind of changes permanently.  It is easy to say but hard to do.  A lifetime worth of habits are not so easy to change.

Most important in your decision making process is what is your current liver status?  I am not talking stenosis but rather the stage and grade of your liver.  Have you had a biopsy or fibrosure test, and if so what are those results?  If you are stage 1 or less, you may want to quit drinking and watch diet, and watch and wait.  If you are stage 3 or 4, different issue.

There are no supplements, herbs, witch doctor chants, or anything else that can cure hep.  Even on those things that some believe help, there is no real evidence they help.  Look around on the net, lot of claims out there, but little to no proven data.

Considering fatty liver and heavy drinker, 54 and 30 year history,  I would be willing to bet your liver is going to be less than pristine.

My suggestion to you would be find out your liver's current state via biopsy or fibrosure.  Carefully and honestly look at your self to see how serious you are about lifestyle changes.  Once you have done these things you will have the information to make a decision.

Doug

[relay]

Hi Jim,
 
I have very little to add to Doug's post (excellent, by the way) except an example:
When I was first diagnosed, I did exactly as you mentioned and changed my diet, quit drinking and drugging, stopped anything that could be harmful to the liver. I did however, continue cigarettes ("A lifetime worth of habits are not so easy to change.").
My viral load remained low (anytime they checked) and, besides the occasional right upper quadrant discomfort, I remained functional.
About two years ago I developed Diabetes, due to HCV, which remained undiagnosed since I was avoiding doctors (denial and fear of cancer), and experienced some muscle wasting due to longterm dehydration. In January of 2011, I made my way to the ER with intense (10!) abdominal pain and they performed surgery since my liver scarring had attached to bowels which blocked some important processes. They also performed a biopsy which indicated cirrhosis.
I am presently on my 16th week of what is starting to look like a 48 week of HCV treatment.
Find out where that liver is, continue to monitor, and educate yourself on the various and/or available medical options.

Best of luck,
gabe

[banarep]

Jim,

My 2 cents worth.  I am 58 years young and have treated 3 times.  The last one worked.  Treatment is not
as bad as you often hear.  On the web, most people who post are those that have had a tough time of
treatment. I worked through all 3 rounds (my last one was in 2009, so I was 56 at the time) and I am a teacher
at a very demanding private school.

One last thing,  as we age, our liver works less efficiently and our immune system becomes weaker,  so as we
get older, our bodies are less able to fight off the hep C and we develop more symptoms.

Just saying

[greyrocker]

Jim, do you like to gamble? Me? I didn't want to play the hand, so I threw in my cards and treated.

One of the best decisions I ever made! I`m now 20 months post treatment, SVR and living life to the fullest without hep c.

I am so glad I made the choice I did!!

greyrocker

[alice]

Jim,

I would guess that Doug is right-- with your 30 yr history, heavy drinking and fatty liver... your liver is "less than pristine". I had quite a shock when I went from minimal damage (stage 1) to full blown decompensated cirrhosis (stage 4 with liver failure) in only four years. Scared the **** out of me.

GreyRocker is also right... it is a gamble and to me, gambling with our lives is a bad bet. The others are right, too... I'd get that biopsy and look into tx options because it's jsut a matter of time before you'll start seeing the other possible effects of a "less than pristine" liver, the diabetes, heart, lung, kidney, etc.

Banarep is also right. Tx isn't always the rough go you read about. Plenty of people, including everyone who has posted here so far, has worked on tx. There is no way to cure hepC except with the current medications. Herbs, supplements, etc. might help some but they will not, and I repeat, will NOT, cure hepC. You say you have been drinking heavily for 30 years and have a fatty liver and that is why I think it is critical that you get a biopsy and look into tx options. If you were 20, only had this for a couple years, and had quit the drinking, I'd be the first one suggesting it would probably be a safe bet to wait for tx but you're not.

Take care of yourself.

alice

[fivekatz]

Just to add to the wisdom already shared by others, let's start with the fact that the treatment may not affect you as badly as you fear.

And on the flip-side Hep C is a time bomb ticking away in your body IMHO. Just as you did not notice it at all for years, with improved diet and lifestyle you may not notice it for years to come.

Being about the same age as you are the question I asked myself was whether I wanted to face a possible liver transplant or "worse" in my early 70's. When you think how fast the first 55 plus years went by, another 15 years is the blink of an eye.

Now in my case, my thinking was there was no way I was not going to go on the treatment and would only request the extra step of a liver biopsy if the treatment were so bad that the I needed the information to determine if it was worth enduring the treatment further.

If you need to do the reverse and get a biopsy to sway you whether to go on treatment or not, IMO you should do that for yourself. It is isn't a matter of immediate life and death but if you can get rid of the virus, along with a health lifestyle, your quality of life as you age will be better off for it.

And six or 12 months of treatment really is in the course of the rest of life is after all, a very short period of time IMO.

Just my take

[Hepper Joe]

There is not much I can say every body has pretty much nailed it.  Jim that is some very good advice bro.
 
Joe

[Jim]

Thank you
Keith, Dough, Relay, bannered, greyrocker, Alice, fidgets, Hepper Joe.
Thank you all for the excellent advice.
I really appreciate the time you all have taken to respond to my post.
This show of support and knowledge has lifted my spirits and I feel a little stronger knowing that others have gone through what I am going through. It's time I stopped feeling sorry for myself and started to live a productive life.
Thanks Jim

[relay]

 

[greyrocker]

Thank you
Keith, Dough, Relay, bannered, greyrocker, Alice, fidgets, Hepper Joe.
Thank you all for the excellent advice.
I really appreciate the time you all have taken to respond to my post.
This show of support and knowledge has lifted my spirits and I feel a little stronger knowing that others have gone through what I am going through. It's time I stopped feeling sorry for myself and started to live a productive life.
Thanks Jim

 

[banarep]

Thank you
Keith, Dough, Relay, bannered, greyrocker, Alice, fidgets, Hepper Joe.
Thank you all for the excellent advice.
I really appreciate the time you all have taken to respond to my post.
This show of support and knowledge has lifted my spirits and I feel a little stronger knowing that others have gone through what I am going through. It's time I stopped feeling sorry for myself and started to live a productive life.
Thanks Jim

 

[alice]

  to you, jim

[Cali]

Jim, as someone who has not and cannot treat because of extensive liver damage, I can tell you from experience that eventually poor liver function will affect other organs if left untreated, i.e. the portal hypertension Doug mentioned, esophageal varices/ruptures, pulmonary hypertension, acites...all of which can become life-threatening by themselves.  Get the biopsy, find out what shape your liver is in, and then you can make a decision about treating.  I can understand your questioning whether or not you can live without tx, but if I had a choice I'd rather gamble on life after treatment than how long I could live without it.

You've gotten excellent advice from people who've been where you are now.  Know that we're all here for you.

Cali