I already had full-on cirrhosis caused by hepC before the new treatments came out. When they started, they weren't treating people who had already progressed to end-stage liver disease, preferring to transplant them and then treat them for the hepC. I'm not a candidate for a transplant, however, because I also have severe COPD-emphysema and the doctors didn't feel that I could survive the transplant surgery. So they did the Harvoni treatment, but warned me that it wouldn't cure my cirrhosis and there was no way of knowing how much symptom relief I would get from the cirrhosis. At the time, I already had hepatic encephalopathy severe enough that I'd had to quit working and go on disability, along with a number of other symptoms. I had no problems with the treatment--it was a snap. Sometimes I'd have a bit of a headache in the morning, but I still have that, and it's been 18 months since I finished the treatment. I do have the type 1 genotype, as it's the most common in North Americans who caught it from IV drug use, and the stats are 95-97% cure. By week 2 the virus was undetectable, although I had to finish 6 months of treatment. One pill a day, although each pill was valued at close to a thousand dollars. I had just gone on Medicare, and between the government, the drug manufacturer, and a foundation called PAN (Patient Assistance Network) my treatment was completely paid for. I had zero co-pay, and my liver doctor set it all up. I didn't have to do anything. Since the treatment, my HE has close to disappeared, my liver panels are close to normal in most regards, and my liver disease really doesn't limit my life at all. (Unlike my lung disease...) I've had repeated ultrasounds and so far everything is stable. All I have left is a tendency to bleed, as my platelets remain low, and I still have a problem with itching caused by toxins-bilirubin mostly--in my system. It's a bitch, because the itching is UNDER your skin, but they have medication that helps quite a bit. I was given an estimate of 5 years tops to live before the treatment, and I've outlived that by almost ten years already. We do live in amazing times!
