Hepatitis Forums (Page 2)

Forgive my procrastinating! I want to share with you my great news! I'm Geno type 2, I'm on day 50 of sovadi and ribavirin last week my lab results came back hep c undetectable! We are so thankful... The side effects so far have been minimal! 34 more days to go! That's it so far. Very pleased with my treatment. Peace out to everyone on the journey! ## Wow! That's amazing! Congratulations, and here's to hoping it continues. The typical side effects of Sovaldi, and Ribavirin my include appetite loss, muscle cramping, nausea, skin itching, and irritability. Which ones have you experienced, so far?

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I was diagnosed with Hep C 25 yrs ago, took Interferon injections for a yr, my Hep C came back as soon as I stopped treatment. Then was given Interferon and Ribavirin but couldn't tolerate it. In 2016 I made it 5 weeks into Harvoni and couldn't live with the side effects. Since 2016 my liver fibrosis has increased now at a 2-3 was a 1-2 for yrs but its now jumped up since the Harvoni. My Dr wants me to start a new treatment but with my sensitivity to medications I'm scared. I've been looking into Mavyret? The paperwork the nurse gave me said 8 weeks? Looks doable ? Was wondering if anyone has had any long term side effects? My Dr said most people tolerate Harvoni , but on this forum I found a group who had as bad, if not worse side effects then I had!. Please can you hel...

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Im sure epclusa caused hearing problems started with ears ringing then lost hearing in right ear dr prescibed predestone (steroid ) lucky for me hearing came back dr said i was very lucky, liver clinic nurse said epclusa would not cause it i think it did iv never had hearing problems ,id been taking epclusa for 7 days ,its a 3 mth treatment iv done 2 mths dont know if i shud risk doing the last mth im over 60 yrs old ,very hard to get liver clinic to respond or suggest anything. Please any ideas.??? ## Hello Lou, I have been looking into epclusa but I haven't been able to find any reliable source that shows any connection between hearing issues and this medicine. While I couldn't find anything regarding a connection between epclusa and hearing I was able to find some studies tha...

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I started Harvoni about two weeks ago. I must admit I am very tired and get slight headaches- nothing I can't handle.. I am starting to feel better already - not sure if it's a placebo affect, but I feel blessed my Insurance approved me for the Harvoni treatment..I must be one of the lucky ones and not the experiencing the major side effects like what I've been reading in this forum. I hope when I am done with the Harvoni treatment - I will be cured of this horrible disease of the liver...Oh and my viral load was over 2 million with a stage 0-1 fibrosis. So, my Hep C disease was caught early on..If you have the opportunity to get treatment- it's one of the risks versus reward type thing and well worth the try and get cured. ## Hello, Sarah! Are you still doing well on Ha...

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3 months after treatment with epclusa, numb fingers, toes, no energy at all severe anxiety pain in knees. I'm 65 years old, before treatment I felt fine enjoyed life now it's opposite wish I could feel normal again. The liver nurse said "you were probably going to get unwell symptoms anyway, but I do not believe this and blame epclusa. I'm in Australia during treatment. I had no support from the liver clinic or liver Dr. ## You are not the first person to report such issues after finishing treatment with Epclusa. There are several posts on this site, and others, all from people dealing with similar issues. Everything you've described is listed by the FDA as normal side effects of the medication that should, theoretically, go away once you have finished your course of...

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Having a big problem with weight gain, post Olysio/Solvaldi 12-wk. tx, and 26-wk Harvoni tx. Clear for two years. Is anyone else experiencing this? I'm getting so tired of my doctors telling me to diet, exercise, and drink water. I'm doing that. Exercise is hard because of the edema in my legs, ankles, and feet. Suggestions? Will be seeing my liver specialist May 18th. Thanks. ## Have you tried seeing your specialist sooner? It is hard to say what might be causing such an issue, if you're done taking the medication. How long ago did you finish your course of treatment with it? The FDA and most patients list the typical side effects as possibly including nausea, dizziness, headache, and joint pain. Are you currently on any other medications? How much have you gained? How bad ...

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Hi I'm in Australia ,hvc pos geno 3,63yrs old I have mild emphasemia I am worried about side effects at my age breathless Ness depression ext my fibrosan was 6.5 thankfully I don't have bad liver symptoms yet,thinking my age may be issue with doing treatment, I think it's normal to feel bit tired at63 I grew up in 70s great yrs but dangerous. Thanks people. ## Hello, Davoe! How are you? Yes, the older you are the more sensitive you can become to side effects, to you may experience more of them and experience them more intensely than younger people. The U.S. FDA lists the typical ones for Sovaldi as possibly including nausea, dizziness, headache, feeling tired and insomnia. Are you on any other medications? ## Hi, I am genotype 3 and just finished the treatment on the 11/8. T...

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I'm done now and finished 12 week tx 4/14/15 and I can say back pain, neck pain and pain in the legs is now a part of it for me. I was dealing with the head aches and sick feeling. Still feel sick and fatigued with joint ache. Hoping all of this stops soon. I'm tired of being sick ## Hello, Mike! How are you? Those are all typical side effects of Harvoni, as reported by the FDA and other users. They should improve with time, now that you've finished your course of treatment with it. Other side effects may also include diarrhea and insomnia. How well did it work for you? It seems that many have had good results with it. ## I was wondering if your joint pain has gone away . I am 55 in good shape and all my labs are normal except viral loan shows 1mm and slightly elevated enzym...

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Finished Epclusa 2 months ago and hot weather is making me very exhausted, plus my legs have mild edema. I'm 65yrs old and dont know if the treatment was successful yet. ## Hello Davoe, This is perfectly normal. Reportedly it takes roughly 12 weeks before the doctors will run tests to see if there is no longer a virus load and even when the tests show that the treatment was successful the body will still need additional time to heal. The healing process length is a case by case basis due to variables such as exercise regiment, diet, age, the bodies ability to recover etc. During the healing process you are already going to be fatigued more than normal and adding heat to the equation will only result in more exhaustion. Just be sure to appropriately hydrate and take as many breaks to...

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The new Hepatitis C medication. I haven't gotten a straight answer to this day. Can you answer these 3 questions or any 1 of them. 1. What is it called? 2. Do you have to use it in combination with interferon in order for it to work; or can it work without interferon? 3. How do the doctors decide if the patient can tolerate it? ## Connie-Bristol-Mayers is still in clinicals with a new medication that will cure Hep C in a week.. I was in the first trial, had one of the highest viral loads EVER (25 years infected). I took a couple pills twice a day for a month. The viral load was COMPLETELY GONE in 7days. It has yet to go to the FDA. It WILL get a rush and it is anticipated to hit the market in 1-2 years. I TOOK NO INTERFERON OR OTHER DRUGS. Do you have other questions? ## Sorry, late...

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Can I get any feedback from someone who's been in a similar situation? I have a very physical job... Am i going to be too sick to work? ## There is really no way anyone can say for sure, since we are all different and may not react the same to any given medication. In most cases, people try to start a new medication, when they have a few days off, that way you can find out how it is going to affect you, before working, driving, or operating heavy machinery. The FDA does warn that it could cause nausea, dizziness, stomach pain, and diarrhea as side effects. Have you started taking it, yet? Can anyone with experience taking it chime in? ## I am also genotype 3 and 30+ years. For the most part I've been ok on Epclusa. (This is the final week) but if I don't drink enough water I...

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My husband started Zepatier on August 22 2018. It was discovered that he had the chronic Hep C virus when he underwent blood work for Large B cell Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. After successful Chemotherapy treatments and on the advice of his oncologist it was recommended he start Direct Acting Antiviral Treatment 8 weeks after his blood work showed he was cancer free. Zepatier was the drug chosen to eradicate the HepC virus which may keep the lymphoma from returning as studies showed that Hep C can be a trigger for some types of NHL. He didn't experience any side effects from the Zepatier in the first 3 weeks. On September 14 he started to get a non stop pounding headache, his balance was off, and muscle pains and weakness. The side effects have continued to get worse, acid reflux, nausea...

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This drug works. I had no side effects. I took this expensive medication for 3 months. The name of the drug is Mavyret. Has anyone else had a positive experience with it? ## I see that the FDA approved Mavyret (Glecaprevir + Pibrentasvir) for use in treating hepatitis C on August 3rd, 2017. So it hasn't been on the market for very long relative to other hepatitis C treatment options such as Harvoni (Ledipasvir + Sofosbuvir). This must be why there aren't many reviews yet. Interestingly enough, Mavyret was specifically approved to treat adults with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes 1-6 without cirrhosis (liver disease) or with mild cirrhosis. Source: fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/pressannouncements/ucm570038.htm Glad to hear it works!

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I have cirrosis and hep c. My doctor has put me on a 12 week course of Harvoni. I finish my treatment in 3 days and then am off for my blood test. The results of my first blood test show significant improvement. I read a lot of other people's experiences who have been on this treatment. A lot I've read say after there 1st blood test (4 weeks on treatment ) that they have already been cured. I'm feeling quite down that my results don't show this for me. While deciding my treatment, my doctor kept changing his mind of the length of time to be on treatment (12 weeks or 24 weeks).he decided on 12 weeks in the end. He's accidentally given me 1 extra repeat. My 12 weeks is up in a few days and I'm thinking of getting it, so I'll be on it for 16 weeks and not tell h...

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I finished 8 weeks of Harvoni on April 8 and labs said HCV is undetected. My question is has anyone heard of "post-Harvoni reduced immunity" I came down with a bad case of the flu and doc thinks Harvoni may have caused reduced immunity. Any insights? ## Hi Sam, I have yet to come across any specific details on post-Harvoni immunity. However, in order to reach an accurate conclusion one must also take into consideration some other things that can impact one's level of immune function, such as: environmental factors, diet, mental/emotional health, etc, during and after the time frame of treatment. Not sure if Harvoni is available in inj. form like similar medications are, but just as a side note - there was a study done by Rockefeller University, suggesting that the act of adm...

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Is it worth doing epclusa? I'm supposed to start next week. I'm 65 yrs old, diagnosed with copd recently and have shortness of breath, always tired & afraid that treatment will make me feel worse. I'm fibroscan f1, geno 3 V L 8mg. I'm very worried. I probably got infected in the 70s and don't feel real bad from hvc yet, just normal old age feelings I think. Any advice is greatly appreciated. ## Hi Lou, Sorry to hear about the symptoms you've been experiencing. Although I've never taken Epclusa myself, I did want to share a link to other related discussion threads here on MedsChat where you may be able to get a better idea of how others have responded to treatment at: [1] medschat.com/search/epclusa Please note that all medications carry some level of risk...

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I get fatigue and brain fog but not nearly as severe as with hep and less frequent also itching all over continues intermittently. Anyone got a clue re; these issues, the Dr, just kinda says 'duh'. ## @Blipette, Sorry to hear that you're still experiencing symptoms 2 months after stopping Harvoni. I hear about this sort of thing happening with other types of medications as well, so personally, I don't think it's very unusual. Probably quite frustrating more than anything, being that it's taking so long to leave your body. I really feel for you. From what I've researched, the half life of ledipasvir (one of the primary active ingredients in Harvoni) is right around 47 hours. It's hard to know how much of this medication might've accumulated (overlappin...

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Curious, I've started my 5th week of treatment and am wondering if anyone has experienced similar side effects as me: Confusion, depression, crazy acid reflux, and mood swings...3 weeks left to go. ## Hello, Joe! How are you? Yes, those can be typical side effects of this medication, along with headache, nausea and dry mouth, as reported by the U.S. FDA. However, such side effects are usually transient and should go away, within a week or two of finishing our course of treatment. Is there anything else I can help with? ## Hi Joe I would finish your treatment! Your in the home stretch. I know the sides are bad...and I live with them still but I am virus free and that is important to hang on to in your battle to get well. I also did the 8 week plan and it worked. ## Joe you are doing ...

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I am taking livolin for a liver problem (Hepatitis B) and have been advised to take it for a month. I want to know if chronic Hepatitis B can be cured? Also, what are the side effects of livolin? ## good morning, I have hepatitis b for more than 7 years now, can I take livolin forte. and for how long. can it help ## Hello Celibba, I'm sorry to hear that you got a Hepatitis B infection. I have good news and bad news. I'll start with the bad news, I was unable to find any credible case studies showing that Livolin can help cure Hepatitis B. The good news is that Hepatitis B is an infection that attacks your liver, but when treated it often does not stay long. Livolin Forte is a foreign supplement not regulated by the FDA which reportedly aids the liver by maintaining tissues in th...

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anyone having problems after stopping harvoni? ## Hello, Kat! How are you? What type of symptoms are you experiencing? I'm not seeing anything about it causing withdrawal symptoms, but it is a relatively new drug. Its typical side effects, as listed by the FDA, may include nausea, diarrhea, headache and weakness. Withdrawal effects would usually be virtually opposite, so may include constipation, dizziness and drowsiness. How long were you on it? ## Hello, I also am having withdrawel feelings, I am constantly tired, I feel fatiqued, slight head ache, have a sick feeling in my stomach I completed the the Harvoni treatment, I pretty much had these same feelings on the Harvoni. I saw my doctor 2 weeks ago, he had me do some blood work, I go back this morning to see him, I hope he has s...

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