New Zealand Hepatitis C
Last Blog of the year 2008
Wish everyone reading this the best for 2009
I’m half way through my hepatitis C treatment now it’s been challenging, my empathy to anyone with hepatitis C.
My advice, prevention, get tested, get treated
Pete Doherty advice on what not to share
Patients who do not initially respond to standard drug therapy for treatment of hepatitis C are unlikely to respond to long-term maintenance therapy
A recent study revealed,
Patients who do not initially respond to standard drug therapy for treatment of hepatitis C are unlikely to respond to long-term maintenance therapy as well, according to a new study.
Yet many patients who do not at first respond to drugs are placed on maintenance therapy, which is expensive and can be both physically and psychologically gruelling , in hopes that long-term treatment will keep the disease in check. The practice is ineffective and possibly harmful, the study’s authors said.
Who will be likely to be successful in drug treatment for Hepatitis C ?
“He suggests scientists could design a test to see if the viruses infecting these patients have these genetic characteristics to determine whether or not standard hepatitis C therapy is likely to work.
“The side effects of the medicines to treat hepatitis C are terrible,” Tavis saids. “Why beat on a patient for a year if the treatment isn’t going to work anyway?
“On the other hand, if we know the medicine is likely to work, we can coax patients to stick with the therapy. It would help doctors to positively support their patients through trying times.”
In addition, hepatitis C therapy is very expensive, with a course of treatment costing up to $30,000. A custom test that determines whether a patient would benefit from the treatment could be developed for about $100 per sample and given to patients before the standard treatment is prescribed, Tavis said.
“If the test shows the treatment won’t work, physicians could counsel against interferon-based therapy, avoiding tens of thousands of dollars in expenses and painful side effects for the patient,” Tavis said. “It’s wasteful to spend millions of dollars on medicine that won’t work.”
Established in 1836, Saint Louis University School of Medicine has the distinction of awarding the first M.D. degree west of the Mississippi River. Saint Louis University School of Medicine is a pioneer in geriatric medicine, organ transplantation, chronic disease prevention, cardiovascular disease, neurosciences and vaccine research, among others. The School of Medicine trains physicians and biomedical scientists, conducts medical research, and provides health services on a local, national and international level.
“U.S. healthcare workers are now significantly safer from needle stick injuries, according to a new study from the University of Virginia International Healthcare Worker Safety Center.
The study also found that the largest reductions in injury rates were for two devices with the highest risk of transmitting infections. These two high-risk devices, phlebotomy needles and I.V. catheter needles, showed reductions of 59 percent and 53 percent respectively.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that U.S. healthcare workers sustain an estimated 384,000 needle stick injuries each year. According to figures from the World Health Organization, nearly three million healthcare workers worldwide are exposed to blood borne diseases in the course of their work every year, resulting in as many as 15,000 hepatitis C infections, 70,000 hepatitis B infections and 500 HIV infections annually. More than 90 percent of these occupational infections occur in developing countries – precisely where health workers are scarcest.”
Hopefully 2009 will be the year of action on Hepatitis C Education Support and Treatment here in New Zealand
It’s also our first birthday for the web site in 2009, we intend to celebrate with the unveiling of our New Website with a new design and content planned.
On a personal level i want to thank all those who have supported me in my journey through treatment I’ve got my fingers crossed and am feeling good, looking forward to 2009.
Best of Health
www.hcv.org.nz