I recently read a study that said 'Interferon Treatment Improves Survival in Chronic HCV Patients by Preventing Liver-related Death'

and also said:

'Compared with the general population, overall mortality was high among untreated patients but not among interferon-treated patients'

Has anyone read similar studys?
If you do a search on the above quote I am sure you will find the study but I know I can't post it here.

Just curious about others thoughts because it makes the issue of whether to treat or not very confusing for us ones that have no real symptons.

I have read the article you mention & just throw it in the blender with all the other articles & try & make sense of it all. I have not & will not treat until something better comes along I am not going to make myself sick & possibly risk long term sides from treatment but that is my decision & I don't wish or try to convince anyone else what to do it's a personal decision that needs to be well thought out treatment is not for everyone & for those that have treated & had a positive or a negative result I am happy for them & admire their courage in trying to do something to help themselves & their liver.
Again only my opinion but with all the money to be made by sooooo many most want you to treat I have been offered treatment by 3 different gastros without a biopsy first ? What does that tell a person ? If they have no biopsy results they can't truly know the condition of your liver or even if you need to treat ? I have not had a biopsy either but will soon have the fibrospect or the fibrosure which is as close as you can get without a biopsy to knowing what stage your liver is in. Again biopsy being the gold standard but I am not willing to have a biopsy since I am not going to treat but would like to have a better idea of what the true state of my liver is without taking the risk of a biopsy & there is a risk though slim I will not take that risk I can't get past the gastro telling me he had only lost one patient to a biopsy & that he stuck the needle into a tumor & the patient bled to death he really freaked me out & I could not believe he told me that but at least he was honest that was a change coming from a doctor for me. With the tests I mentioned it is done with a simple blood test. Again this is my decision & my opinion & everyone has & is entitled to theirs & I respect everyone elses. This is not anything to rush into learn all you can shake it all up & hopefully make the right decision for yourself. I think from what I have read is that if the treatment slows down the progression & buys you more time with less liver damage then it was worth it if it worked or not as far as SVR goes but I don't buy it. Lot's of good folks here & I have learned alot from this site I am sure you will hear from Sean & Thanbey as well as others & I value their thoughts & advice as they as well as many others here have first hand knowledge of treatment do's & dont's & I DO NOT.