My husband who is 26 was diagnosed with Hep C last fall in october. he started treatment immediatly, and after the 1 month blood test it showed that he was responding really well to the treatment! interferon has been a nightmare for him. he lost soooo much weight (from 64 kilos to 51), a huge amount of hair, he loses his appetite, is increddibly depressed, so much so that he is convinced it is the reason for his heroin relapse. he is now celebrating 3 months clean, and his test results come back negative for hep c. the depression and lack of appetite among many other symptoms that i am sure you are all aware of are killing him. he sleeps almost 20 hours a day during the first 3 days after his shot. everyone says that the side effects get better as you continue treatment, but for him it is the COMPLETE OPPOSITE. things have gotten worse and worse, he sleeps more, he eats less, he cant make it to his NA meetings, which are an essential part of his life right now. what is wrong with stopping treatment? he has 2 months left, a transatlantic move ahead of him as well as finding a new job. being incapacitated is going to be very difficult for us to handle.
anyone's information on why not to quit treatment would be so valuable!!
thank you all for taking the time.
The following user gives a hug of support to kimberly22: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
The Following User Says Thank You to kimberly22 For This Useful Post: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
I would recommend finishing the treatment.
It's two more months, to ensure freedom from Hepatitis forever.
Women deal with nine months of feeling like hell in order to bring a baby into the world.
Cancer patients deal with months and months of feeling like hell from chemotherapy.
Not to sound unsympathetic, but he needs to buckle down and keep his eyes on the prize (which is his life, hep-free).
If interferon side effects are going to cause him to relapse and shoot heroin again, he would've anyway, as soon as something stressful or challenging came along.
Obviously, the transatlantic move will have to be postponed; it's out of the question while he's in this condition.
Tell him to hang in there two more months.
Tell him he HAS to.
best of luck.
The following user gives a hug of support to Kali333: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
The Following User Says Thank You to Kali333 For This Useful Post: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
My husband who is 26 was diagnosed with Hep C last fall in october. he started treatment immediatly, and after the 1 month blood test it showed that he was responding really well to the treatment! interferon has been a nightmare for him. he lost soooo much weight (from 64 kilos to 51), a huge amount of hair, he loses his appetite, is increddibly depressed, so much so that he is convinced it is the reason for his heroin relapse. he is now celebrating 3 months clean, and his test results come back negative for hep c. the depression and lack of appetite among many other symptoms that i am sure you are all aware of are killing him. he sleeps almost 20 hours a day during the first 3 days after his shot. everyone says that the side effects get better as you continue treatment, but for him it is the COMPLETE OPPOSITE. things have gotten worse and worse, he sleeps more, he eats less, he cant make it to his NA meetings, which are an essential part of his life right now. what is wrong with stopping treatment? he has 2 months left, a transatlantic move ahead of him as well as finding a new job. being incapacitated is going to be very difficult for us to handle.
anyone's information on why not to quit treatment would be so valuable!!
thank you all for taking the time.
if you think he is beter then continue and try vitimin liquid for him along wiith beet juice. stay on it ....ok and as much vitimen as he can take.
The following user gives a hug of support to finet5466: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
The Following User Says Thank You to finet5466 For This Useful Post: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
kali333 - thank you for your strong opinion, i think you are right and we will continue treatment. i know that women and cancer patients and many other people in various conditions have to suffer in order to get to somewhere better; i was of course just having a hard time watching him suffer, and thought i'd see if there was any easy way out...
'If interferon side effects are going to cause him to relapse and shoot heroin again, he would've anyway, as soon as something stressful or challenging came along.'
-i was't trying to make excuses for his relapse, just trying to emphasize the severity of his depression. im positive he would have relapsed when something stressful came along eventually, he wasn't that strong against relapse before treatment. (i have read that relapse to drug abuse is a side effect observed by doctors from interferon- i'm assuming that's because of the extreme depression. i was kind of shocked that 4 months of using heroin and interferon simultaneously didn't cancel out the effect of the interferon or worsen his condition. i was sure he had blown it.)
'Obviously, the transatlantic move will have to be postponed; it's out of the question while he's in this condition.'
- unfortunatly it can't be postponed, which worries me but i think he can get through it, he just has to endure the day/night of traveling.
'Tell him to hang in there two more months.'
-will do
finet5466- thanks for your advice, he actually stopped taking his vitamins about 2 months ago because they were very expensive and the interferon is completely draining us $ wise - i think i may have underestimated the importance of them and i will get more asap! if i can get him to drink beet juice...i'll try!
thank you two for your help!
The following 3 users give hugs of support to: kimberly22 finet5466 (07-04-2011), Kali333 (07-09-2011), luyingjie (01-25-2012)
The Following User Says Thank You to kimberly22 For This Useful Post: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
I have been on Interferon for 13 weeks and showed with no viral load present after 5 weeks, I am now on week 14, and still no trace of Hep C in blood tests, what are the associated risks of stopping the interferon/ribavarin now, rather than continuing for another 13 weeks ?
The following user gives a hug of support to Orlock: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
The Following User Says Thank You to Orlock For This Useful Post: luyingjie (01-25-2012)
i honestly dont know, my husband ended up finishing his treatment and now, about 1 month after his last shot, some of the effects are lasting, but the depression is less and he's got a sex drive! woohoo
i know of one person who stopped the treatment after 7 months and has not yet relapsed, however its a thing of chance - i mean its possible that you would be fine and never have hep c again, or its possible it would come back and you would have to do this all over again. it's a gamble, as far as i know. i would definitly get approval from your doctor to stop treatment before doing so.
safe to stop interferon treatment? 
Re: safe to stop interferon treatment? 
