Question: Dear Dave, Thanx for answering my questions on Hepatitis C.

1) Would you be please Kind enough to tell me about the method and way of INTRON THERAPY OR INTERFERON THERAPY for treating HCV.

2) What would be the cost (estimation if not sure) of this therapy

Thanking you in anticipation for your quick,positive response.

Answer: Thanks for your questions.

In the old days, interferon treatment was effective about 25% of the time. The drug was usually injected by the patient herself three times per week. Things have changed a bit since then.

There is a different treatment that combines the use of interferon with another drug called ribavirin. The effectiveness varies depending on the genome of the virus and a number of other factors. You should ask your doctor what he thinks the chances for success are.

Ribavirin and a Pegylated interferon is what is most often used now for treatment.

Pegylated interferon is injected under the skin once-per-week and the ribavirin is taken as a pill. After almost 10 months of treatment some people will become HCV free.

Your doctor will know within the first 12 weeks if the treatment is likely to be effective by monitoring your wife’s liver enzymes.

Researchers have found that in the case of most viral infection, combinations of drugs tend to be more effective than a single drug alone. HCV is no exception.

There are side effects to both the combination therapy and the interferon alone therapy. Ask your doctor for details and what to watch out for.

Female patients and female partners of male patients should not become pregnant during treatment as it can harm the fetus.

Whether pregnant or not, the patient should be closely monitored by their doctors during treatment. Some of the side effects can be quite scary if they develop.

Be sure to ask for and read the side effect hand-out sheet that comes with the medication. This way you will be on the look out for the things that could happen.

This is the information that I currently have, however, it may not be completely accurate, you will need to ask these questions of your doctor.

As for the cost of therapy, I do not know the answer to that question. It will depend on the exact treatment that your doctor prescribes.

Perhaps you could call a pharmacy and ask about the cost of the interferon and ribavirin combination treatment to estimate the cost?

Of course, if we had a universal health care system, you wouldn’t have to worry about the cost. Our current system is flawed, especially for people who are not rich.

Since I am not rich either, I am also concerned about the cost of health care and medication too. I do hope that things work out well for you and your wife!

Warm Regards,

David Snape
Author: What You Should Know about Gum Disease

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PS. I have found that the exercises of Falun Dafa are very helpful to maintain the health of my body.

* This post is for information purposes only, and is not intended to serve as advice or anything other than entertainment. If you have or think you might have any health problems, including HCV or anything else, be sure to see your physician for diagnosis and treatment.