For how long should I have to take HCV treatment?

Question

Hi doctor,

I am 40 years old. I was diagnosed with hepatitis C 16 years before while donating blood. No allopathic treatment was taken till last month. My liver function tests are monitored regularly. Most of the time, the result will be elevated SGOT and SGPT of 200 and 300, respectively. But it did not affect me in any way.

My appetite is very normal, and I am a pure vegetarian. In my recent test, I was diagnosed with genotype one, and the maximum viral load was 12 lakhs. I started on the treatment of SOF+LDV. Following that, viral load was checked after seven days and 30 days, and it showed that the viral load was not detectable.

Also, for the first time, my LFT came back completely normal with no elevated level of an enzyme. Most research suggests that eight weeks of treatment is fine if the reports are normal. Should I complete 12 weeks or stop after eight weeks of treatment?

Please advise.

Thank you.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

We are here to help you. I would highly recommend continuing the medicine for 12 weeks at least. You are fortunate that your viral load is undetectable just with these medicines. Most people with hepatitis C require six to 12 months with Interferon treatment. So, let us not take any chance. Please complete the medication. Do not go on studies. Studies do have people who have failed to respond. But, since their number is less than people who responded, a study claims that. But, try to understand that you can also be one of the people who did not respond or relapse on treatment with eight weeks of therapy. So, complete the 12 weeks course.

Kindly revert in case of further queries.