N B,
Welcome to the HW Hep Forum.
We are a group of patients and caregivers of those with liver disease, Hep C and a host of other diseases and conditions that can destroy a liver in their own unique way.
My partner has had Hep C since 1969 or 1970....like you experimented with IV drugs and now it is now! He didn't know for a long time and when he found out, he took the combo treatment....Interferon and Ribavirin, but he did not clear the virus.
That was in 2003. His liver held on until 2011 when he had a liver transplant. The miracle of all this is that he was a drinking man....WAS....he quit drinking alcohol in the nick of time and qualified for a transplant after attending AA for 6 months almost every day.
The difficult part in all this good news, is that Hep C is a blood disease...and so the new liver extends his life, but it is being attacked by the Hep C all over again. His Viral Load is 7.6 million this month and has been as much as 57 million on quarter. They test him all the time.
There are new and better treatments for Hep C that are having much better % success rates to clear the virus before it completely destroys the liver.
I agree with David....get thee to a major medical center. Have all the test and a biopsy done to know your situation....how much damage has been done. And that will suggest how urgent it is for you to seek a treatment.
The average run of the mill GI doc will do some testing, but most of us here have found that a specialist in liver diseases is where you will get the life saving treatments you will need.
I assume you are symptom free and that the Hep C is a big surprise. That virus is tricky, it does its work quietly until a very advanced stage. In its final stages it is very difficult.
We are not doctors, but we have an active membership in every phase of diagnosis and treatment. Come often. Let us know how you are doing and ask anything you want.
There are some good reference materials at the top of the forum...take a peek.
There is a SEARCH choice just above the posts. You can put in a key work and it will search pages and pages of these posts for the topic of interest. Liver biopsy or Hep C treatment might be good key words to search.
Welcome aboard.
Mama Lama
Post Edited By Moderator (hep93) : 3/23/2013 9:45:24 PM (GMT-6)