Thanks Chester & Emilio.

My GP wrote to my NHS Hepatology Consultant explaining my course of action and requesting a prescription for my generics (declined), and for the Hepatology Clinic to monitor my bloods (declined).

So my GP offered to to all the blood tests going forward apart from the viral load tests, which are tested at said Hepatology Clinic. They also asked to be kept in the loop with my private treatment and tests (I’d given the private clinic permission to contact my GP anyway), so I dropped off copies of the letters from the clinic and the extensive set of baseline blood tests I’d had done at the clinic a few weeks ago.

I’m due an annual appointment at my NHS Hepatology Clinic next April. If I achieve SVR, I’m tempted to go along and play dumb for a while (assuming that my GP hasn’t bothered to keep them in the loop) and let them scratch their heads, before informing the Consultant that some fake third world generics have cured me no thanks to him and for him to go and try the anatomically impossible.

Maybe if all of us going down the generics route in the UK play dumb on our return to NHS clinics, the rash of unexplained miracle cures will become newsworthy. Then we could spring the lowdown on them, and make the NHS clinics publicly look like the bunch of Big Pharma-addicted ****s and medical dinosaurs that a lot of them are

My NHS Consultant not only chose not to exercise his discretion, I’m pretty sure he chose to lie to me about available treatments for me (see the attached letter further up the thread).

On a purely anecdotal and hearsay note (and it shall remain that way), I used to work with a guy who told me his son worked in NHS admin, and had obtained his job with a fake CV. My former colleague was gloating about his son having recently been promoted into a fairly senior management position with the greeting “Welcome to the club” by his boss. It was quite the gravy train according to my former colleague. Which all concurred with the stuff my dad used to tell me about his business dealings with NHS middle and senior management: He loved all the business he got (and boy did they know how to throw money around), but hated most of the people.

Anyway, ranting over. Contrary to how it appears, I’m actually quite elated today for some reason, and I’ve only just started to ‘come down’ and feel tired.

Thanks Doc,

I’m not on my backside financially, so I’m not looking to cut any corners on this. But I have to work for a living, so I don’t want to waste hundreds of pounds on unnecessary tests.

Would it be advisable to get another test done during or at the completion of treatment?

Just picked up my 15 day NHS blood test results from my GP.

ALP down a bit, still at the higher end of what’s considered normal range.
ALT right down from middle of normal range to lower end.
GGT still high, but down from starting 357 and 5 days previous to latest 194 to 154. Hopefully this trend will continue.

Results (with personal info redacted) attached.

Ha ha! Nanna nap. I like that one.

Still got the myalgia and arthralgia that I had for a couple of years before I started this treatment, but they can be side effects of Sof+Dac anyway. So maybe they improve post-treatment.

The big difference is ‘up top’. I feel much more clear of mind, and don’t get mentally fatigued. Also, I’d been getting increasingly irritable, particularly with my young son who is as as bright as a button and a live wire with it. I’d come to hate myself for being ‘short’ with him, but just couldn’t control it. That seems to have faded now, with a relaxed mentality coming with the clarity of mind.