he was diagnosed with it today what kind of changes can he make to maybe even reverse it
2007-08-14 07:57:35 · 5 answers · asked by junebug4881 2 in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ STDs
Your friend should not drink alcohol; alcohol increased the virus's ability to duplicate and caused liver damage 5x faster than someone without hep c.
There is a treatment that is between 50-80% successful, depending on what genotype he has. A genotype is a sub type of hep c. The most common genotype in the US is genotype 1, which requires a one year treatment. Genotypes 2 & 3 respond better to the treatment meds. Geno 2 is treated for 6 months, geno 3 is being treated for a year now (by doctors who are on top of the research) as in the last few years we've seen many geno 3's relapsing.
Your friend needs to get vaccinated against hep A & B, if he hasn't already been vaccinated or exposed (a simple blood test will tell). You don't want to have the double whammy of having two types of hepatitis; that is very dangerous. When you have hep c, you are at an increased risk of developing cirrhosis & hepato cellular carcinoma (Liver cancer).
Eat a low fat diet (who SHOULDN'T do that??!) and get a moderate amount of exercise. I recommend finding a good support group so you can learn about the disease so you can manage it. Best wishes.
2007-08-14 16:37:02 · answer #1 · answered by cindy1323 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hep C is not itself life threatening although because it attacks the liver and causes liver problems, that is life threatening. No, he can not get rid of it, it will always be there although there are medication that will increase his life expectancy and quality of life. Unfortunately, the medication can make you very ill. It's kinda like chemotherapy, you get sick while doing it but after treatment you feel better for a while.
2007-08-14 11:11:32 · answer #2 · answered by monica 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only treatment that works is interfron (not spelled but close) is a nine month treatment and you take shots 3 times a week makes you feel like you have the flu, I went through 2 nine months and so far so good my liver tests are good, makew sure your friend stays away from alcohol, and yes it can go into liver cancer if not controled. good luck
2007-08-14 08:08:10 · answer #3 · answered by violet1842003 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you really should look at the web site for this. hep c can be deadly and it also opens the door for cancer.
2007-08-14 08:04:47 · answer #4 · answered by racer 51 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hepitatis C is life threatining ONLY if you don't get help.
2007-08-14 08:25:56 · answer #5 · answered by Christopher T 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋