still figuring this out....

[palbrian]

Thankyou for your advice and comments. The hep c isnt active, so she doesnt know what type it is. Should we go see a liver specialist? Is there anything he can do? I am just really afraid there is alot of liver damage that she doesnt know about. Do you have any suggestions to put my mind at ease? I am just making sure she is happy and we have this figured out.....thanks  

[portann]

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[portann]

Why don't you copy and paste this second question into your original thread instead of starting another new thread with a question about the same topic? By doing that, your original thread will bump to the top of the page.

That's the best way to keep your related questions and replies together and for everyone to make sense of what's said.

[Bill1954]

It’s probably a good idea to ask for a referral to GI doc or a hepatologist; there might be some confusion, and it’d be nice to clear it up.

She should request an ‘HCV antibody test’ to see if she was ever indeed exposed to HCV.

If that is positive/reactive, an ‘HCV RNA test’ should be ordered as a follow up to see if the exposure resulted in actual long-term chronic disease.

If the RNA test is positive, the doctor will discuss with her whether treatment is in order; this is usually determined by liver biopsy.

First things first; get an antibody test, and go from there. Did that help?

Bill

[nygirl7]

Palbrian you either have hep or you don't there is no such thing as active hep vs. inactive hep.  

Obviously if she has had this since she was a little girl she must be seeing a heptologist? If she is not she really needs to see one right away and have a biopsy to determine how her liver is doing (how much liver damage it already has) to see how to proceed.  Then if her liver doesn't have too much damage she might decide to wait or do treatment - but she really needs to have a biopsy and then have one every few years at LEAST.