Hi lifepivoting,

during treatment I used disposable razors and cheap toothbrushes as much as I could.

Bleach and water for the toothbrushes and changing them after a few days, and daily change of razor for quite a few weeks. Backed off a bit later on to just bleaching toothbrushes and every second day ditching the razor.

Figured it was cheap enough to put the mind at rest.

Used the cheapest toothbrushes and razors I could find as well. They were that crappy you would want to change them anyway!

In the big scheme of things, a few extra dollars over the week – not much more then a good cup of coffee though. At worst a few minor lacerations to the face, and a very weird taste in the mouth is my main memory of that time.

All the best,

Jeff

Hello all,

me thinks that if they are going to approve funding DAA’s when you are F2 or F3 anyway, why not approve it at first point of call. Maybe save some liver damage on the way through.

I know I have heard this type of thing before …., but it still amazes me to hear it again. I’d be just as worried about becoming a gibbering wreck using your system over there. Does my head in just to hear about it.

Don’t know what the costs are to get generics to the States, but I guess it is still a significant amount if you are short a quid. Using generic DAA’s here too before they were fully subsidised cost a bit, but no more then copping an expensive servicing bill for the car.

I like my car, but I like my liver too.

Yours

Jeff

Hello Sheldon,

“American insurance companies wants you to be almost dead before they will pay for treatment.”

We in Aus were lucky because we had generics through GP2U (Dr James) before the government saw sense and subsidised the meds.

I am F4 – don’t go there if you can get rid of the virus.

Took two goes to clear and even with a crook liver still feel heaps better.

Best wishes with treatment.

Yours

Jeff

Hi Nick,

I had Genotype 3 which is harder to treat and made worse by cirrhosis which occurred over twenty plus years. Far as I know I am still clear of the virus after DAA treatment.

Using GP2U (Skype) was pretty okay here in Australia and the generic medications easy to obtain, though at that time they were not free, but still affordable. In Australia we have something called the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and now the DAA’s are subsidised (read only need a token payment and the government pays the rest).

Read lots of posts on this forum from people in America, and people who cannot get the DAA’s through your insurance schemes there, appear to manage to get them anyway at an affordable cost.

The “Not for me but for my kids, they need a father” resonated with me as my own General Practitioner said similar to me when I told him I was going the generic DAA route through GP2U.

I think getting DAA’s in America is not as simple as it is here, but from what I have read in the forum it is doable, and there is lots of advice here how to manage this.

Hep C ain’t anybody’s friend and take it from me, life is that much better without it.

Best wishes

Jeff

Thanks for this information. In the course of reading it, I stumbled with the term “originator DAA’s” so I googled the term and come across the following article relating to South Africa:

http://medicine-access.pointofcarejournals.com/article/68da34d5-fa78-4e9a-a40b-95d9d7f566df

All the words and terms are there: affordable, generic, Gilead, patents, and an already burdened health care, system.

From the abstract:

In time, access to lower prices for some originator DAA therapies has materialized; however, to many, this still may be out of reach. Generic medicines for hepatitis C do work and are effective and affordable. If we are going to achieve the objective of the elimination of viral hepatitis, generic medicines will need to form part of the solution.

It took me back to thinking about the many issues that had been discussed on this forum over the years.

Yours all,

Jeff

Hello all,

I needed to be retreated quite a while back and am now virus free to date.

Need LFT’s done again in June and as I am still fit fighting fit so I expect my liver is okay virus wise.

Been lucky with liver scans to date as well.

I was looking through the list of sub categories in this topic and all the posts are months and years old.

Just wondering if treatment had got to the stage where treatment failures are now uncommon.

Maybe ‘retreaters’ like me have gone the way of the Dodo? If so, well and good.

Jeff

A mate sees the same liver specialist as I do. He has cirrhosis like I do.

He never had Hep C but USED to drink a lot more then even I thought – a hidden bottle of Rum here and there at home, usually in the garage where his missus did not venture.

I was told to give it away completely, slowed down years ago, and now only have a schooner of light every few weeks/months to remember times and taste past.

Got over missing it after a while. Given the social circles l mix in, not finding out I had Hep C may have me ending up with cirrhosis through the booze like my mate. Strange world.

“A lot of what you like in moderation” comes to mind.

“F_ck Hep C” also comes to mind, and for anyone listening on the side: “get treated”.

Yours

Jeff

HI Greedfighter,

I did see some adds a year back in an American magazine (Popular Science? Mechanics?) and one featured an African American man silently contemplating treatment. Reminded me of adds or years ago in the same magazine for cars. That is focussing on prestige/sporty-ness/the self made man …… in other words those who could pay.

Hope this bloke (am I gullible to think he is not real) snapped out of his stupor and got treated. I suspect he was worried about paying for the stuff without selling the house and cat. Maybe he was thinking about generics?

If so, I like American adds.

Jeff