no question, just sharing

[summer7799]

Went to the hepa Dr yesterday to discuss treatment. He wants me to treat as soon as I can make a decision. I walked in thinking I had my mind made up to treat with VIC triple therapy. But now I'm more confused than ever. He said he would not choose VIC. He said VIC only has a 65% success rate, while INC is 85%. He said VIC will eventually be taken off the market. I told him my fears of taking Incivek and he understood, but said the odds of curing with INc are so much better. But he said if he were me, he would go into the all oral trial. It's in phase 2. And I would either treat for 12 or 24 weeks. He said the people in this trial are responding extremely well, some people becoming UND in days. Also he said there are almost no side effects. He said he thinks the trial should be my first choice. He said second choice would be Incivek. They are also doing a trial for Incivek that is in phase 4. So I would get treatment for free either way. Lastly he said if I'm stil bent on treating with VIC then its my choice and he will treat me with it. But I will have to go thru my insurance and pay. This is a hard choice!!

[can-do-man]

Always amazes me how some can hype drugs that really have no data for geno type 1 and at the same time discount drugs that has been proved to have a very high svr rate, i guess if its your drug then they don't cherry pick but if it a proven drug with several years of trials the results are misleading... Hmmm, very interesting.

[can-do-man]

"Your doc may be commenting on recent observations."

Sorry but not possible, these new drugs have not been on the market long enough, are you saying this data is wrong? Sorry don't buy that and neither would the FDA. As for "just go with doctors advice". Oh my.

[desrt]

a) Put yourself in your doctor's hands and do what he tells you.

b) Do your own research. Make a choice. Live with your choice.

willbb and can-do-man have pointed out some reasons why I would go with b).

Everyone's tx experience is different. Until genetic testing improves to the point where they can give 100% answers, we have to go with the best info available.
Good Luck with it.



"If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice."

[curiouslady1]

I personally think that for some of us who are terribly frightened and anxious, it is easy to mishear our doctors.  

[OdinLovesLife]

Your doctor might not be misinformed. The information published for clinical trials is gathered in a controlled environment with selected subjects and very high standards of care. Once a treatment is released for wider use other factors come into play and success rates can change. Your doc may be commenting on recent observations. If you are really concerned I think you should ask him to explain why he said it. Honestly he sounds like he would have more up to date info than most people on these forums. We usually only get to find out after the studies are published.

[OdinLovesLife]

Sandy, from reading this thread and previous ones posted by Summer it appears that her doctor has discussed both conventional and new treatments with her. The fact that he is offering her a trial suggests that he is involved in research. In my personal experience the researchers are the most up-to-date. The advice that Summer has told us about from him seems good. He has recommended a benign treatment with a high barrier to resistance and a very promising profile overall. Those were my reasons for asking her why she didn't want to take his advice in this case.

In most circumstances, I think you are absolutely right. Become very informed from multiple sources. Unfortunately there really are a lot of doctors who haven't kept up with the latest information and don't offer the best advice. I got burned myself. I wasn't aware of just how much variation there can be in skill.