Posted 10/12/2014 4:53 PM (GMT 0)
Check out the Hepatitis Resources in the sticky post above.
Hep C is a virus. It is a blood borne virus, so it moves through the bloodstream. Hep C virus can damage the liver, causing cirrhosis (scarring) . Alcoholism, some auto-immune disease, and Tylenol in too high a dose, Fatty Liver, can also cause cirrhosis.
With Hep C:
The goal is to treat and rid the blood of Hep C virus prior to liver damage.
Those who had Hep C virus for many years before it was able to be diagnosed and treated, will have liver damage, the last stage being cirrhosis.
Cirrhosis only has one cure right now....a liver transplant.
The bad deal is this. Hep C is in the blood, and even if one gets a transplant to cure cirrhosis of the liver, the blood with Hep C virus will now damage the transplanted liver. This is why it was important for my husband to cure his Hep C, even though we knew he still would need a transplant to cure cirrhosis of the liver.
Livers are in short supply, due to the lack of organ donors in the USA and other countries. If there were enough donor's, all these people waiting on a transplant list could get a transplant before they were on deaths door. Some die. Some become too sick for a transplant before they reach the top of the list. You need to be sick enough, but not too sick for a transplant.
Right now we need everyone to sign up to become organ donors. You can not be too old, or too sick. Those in charge make the decisions. Often, a less than perfect organ is better than dying with none available.
I hope that helped you some. It is just my non-medical version on this fine, Sunday morning. Big Hugs