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Pain in liver
Can anyone tell me, pleace, how common is pain in liver in cirrhosis? I am afraid of it. I have hep C and cirrhosis more than 20 years.
Gilead, Harvoni manufacturer, has a program to provide the meds to needy patients. Go on the website and look for Patient Assistance Program. It’s a breeze compared to previous combos. I tried 3 previously which were miserable and failed.
1 Comments
Thanx, Daydreamer!
We have found therapy 2 months ago( Epclysa), some people in our country are dealing this medicine for a lot of money, and he started good, with no sideaffects..we hope for the best.
Are you cured now? What was your therapy? How do you feel daydreamer...
We have found therapy 2 months ago( Epclysa), some people in our country are dealing this medicine for a lot of money, and he started good, with no sideaffects..we hope for the best.
Are you cured now? What was your therapy? How do you feel daydreamer...
The first of the new medicines became available in the US late in 2013. Many more have been approved since then. A person who is a treatment failure with cirrhosis is harder to cure than someone who does not have cirrhosis and has never been treated before.
That does not me he has no chance of cure. I was treated with the old treatments with shots of interferon and ribavirin pills three different times but I had no response to treatment. Then I developed cirrhosis. Seven years after I was diagnosed with cirrhosis I treated with two of the new medicines but I relapsed. Two months after I failed treatment Harvoni was approved. I took Harvoni and ribavirin together for 24 weeks. This is more time than the standard treatment but my doctor wanted to be more aggressive with treatment because of my treatment history.
This treatment worked even though I had failed 4 previous treatments, even though I have cirrhosis I was still cured.
Now three years later I still have cirrhosis but my doctor does not expect me toget any worse and over time I may see some improvements.
It sounds like his liver disease is not very advanced. Do you know how low his plateletcount is? Mine was 85 before I treated and has risen to 110 after I wascured. People with hep c always have elevated ALT and AST. Having elevated liver enzymes means something is bothering the liver but not how much damage has happened or is happening. Everyone I know of that has been cured including me have had their liver enzymes return to normal. The only lab test I have now that is not normal is my platelet count which is low because of liver damage.
Most herbal treatments do little to nothing to help the liver. Some can be harmful to a liver with significant liver damage and cirrhosis. He should make sure his doctor says the herbals he is taking are safe for someone with liver disease.
Until he can cure his hep c he needs to eat a healthy well balanced diet and make sure he is getting enough protien. He should try to get exercise as tolerated. He needs to see his doctor appointments, get whatever tests his doctor recommends and be immunized against Hepatitis A and B.
If he can cure his hep c he may be able to live a normal life span with cirrhosis. It depends on how much liver damage he has before he is cured.
That does not me he has no chance of cure. I was treated with the old treatments with shots of interferon and ribavirin pills three different times but I had no response to treatment. Then I developed cirrhosis. Seven years after I was diagnosed with cirrhosis I treated with two of the new medicines but I relapsed. Two months after I failed treatment Harvoni was approved. I took Harvoni and ribavirin together for 24 weeks. This is more time than the standard treatment but my doctor wanted to be more aggressive with treatment because of my treatment history.
This treatment worked even though I had failed 4 previous treatments, even though I have cirrhosis I was still cured.
Now three years later I still have cirrhosis but my doctor does not expect me toget any worse and over time I may see some improvements.
It sounds like his liver disease is not very advanced. Do you know how low his plateletcount is? Mine was 85 before I treated and has risen to 110 after I wascured. People with hep c always have elevated ALT and AST. Having elevated liver enzymes means something is bothering the liver but not how much damage has happened or is happening. Everyone I know of that has been cured including me have had their liver enzymes return to normal. The only lab test I have now that is not normal is my platelet count which is low because of liver damage.
Most herbal treatments do little to nothing to help the liver. Some can be harmful to a liver with significant liver damage and cirrhosis. He should make sure his doctor says the herbals he is taking are safe for someone with liver disease.
Until he can cure his hep c he needs to eat a healthy well balanced diet and make sure he is getting enough protien. He should try to get exercise as tolerated. He needs to see his doctor appointments, get whatever tests his doctor recommends and be immunized against Hepatitis A and B.
If he can cure his hep c he may be able to live a normal life span with cirrhosis. It depends on how much liver damage he has before he is cured.
5 Comments
Thank you so much..I ll ask him about details in few days, and I ll write it down, because it is so confusing to me.
Hi Flyin..I have asked my boyfriend about his recent lab tests, and he gave me this:
May -AST 76, ALT 97( in february was ast 52 alt 68),
Placelats 47. He is worried cause he feels pain in liver like never before, and liver is palpated 2cm( few years ago was 1cm, then normal). He eats healthy, raw vegan most of the time and stopped smoking and drinking 20 years ago. But he doesn t eat meat at all. I was wandering if it is so good for him because of protein, but he claims that meat raise alt and ast in liver..I have told him about your state and he told me it gives him some hope..but in our country, government still don t give it to us..
May -AST 76, ALT 97( in february was ast 52 alt 68),
Placelats 47. He is worried cause he feels pain in liver like never before, and liver is palpated 2cm( few years ago was 1cm, then normal). He eats healthy, raw vegan most of the time and stopped smoking and drinking 20 years ago. But he doesn t eat meat at all. I was wandering if it is so good for him because of protein, but he claims that meat raise alt and ast in liver..I have told him about your state and he told me it gives him some hope..but in our country, government still don t give it to us..
ALT and AST will vary over time and even from day to day. Those types of elevations are not unusual for people with hep c only a little above normal. People who are very sick with a major injury to the liver will have ALT and AST 500 to 1000.
The liver has no nerves to detect pain but the membrane surrounding his liver does. Because his liver is larger than normal it is pressing against this membrane causing the pain sensations.
His platelets are low. If the get as low as 30 his doctor may order blood platelet transfusions. With low platelets he will have easy bruising and is at risk of bleeding. Hopefully nothing he is taking can cause thinning of the blood. Some medicines for pain like aspirin, Ibuprofen, or Naprosyn would not be safe for him.
I have never heard that eating meat causes liver injury which is what causes elevations in ALT and AST. Protein can be obtained from plant sources like nuts, beans and legumes.
He should make sure with his doctor his diet is ok for him in his medical condition and all the medicines including herbal medicines are safe for him.
Best of luck to you both.
The liver has no nerves to detect pain but the membrane surrounding his liver does. Because his liver is larger than normal it is pressing against this membrane causing the pain sensations.
His platelets are low. If the get as low as 30 his doctor may order blood platelet transfusions. With low platelets he will have easy bruising and is at risk of bleeding. Hopefully nothing he is taking can cause thinning of the blood. Some medicines for pain like aspirin, Ibuprofen, or Naprosyn would not be safe for him.
I have never heard that eating meat causes liver injury which is what causes elevations in ALT and AST. Protein can be obtained from plant sources like nuts, beans and legumes.
He should make sure with his doctor his diet is ok for him in his medical condition and all the medicines including herbal medicines are safe for him.
Best of luck to you both.
Thanks again! I am worried because he is deppresed from time to time.
He told me he lost his libido after treatment hep with Ribavirin..so he takes cialis or viagra, rarely, but I think he shouldn t. I told him it is not
necessary, cause I love him and sex is not that important to me, but he says it is for him, and his doctor approved cialis from time to time. Still he has varices II grade. And low placelets, so I am afraid for his life. He still works as a singer in his band regardless of his tiredness and illness, about two times a month...I don t know how long he would be able to carry on..
I want you all the best Flyin, good health and long life!
He told me he lost his libido after treatment hep with Ribavirin..so he takes cialis or viagra, rarely, but I think he shouldn t. I told him it is not
necessary, cause I love him and sex is not that important to me, but he says it is for him, and his doctor approved cialis from time to time. Still he has varices II grade. And low placelets, so I am afraid for his life. He still works as a singer in his band regardless of his tiredness and illness, about two times a month...I don t know how long he would be able to carry on..
I want you all the best Flyin, good health and long life!
Thanks. Wishing all the best to you and your husband.
Hi I had hep c for 37 before I was cured 3 years ago. I was diagnosed with cirrhosis 7 years before I was curedof hep c. I now have had cirrhosis for 10.5 years. I haven’t ever had any liver pain but I do have some edema and a small amount of ascities. I was found to have grade 3 esophageal varicies on my 3rd upper endoscopy which required banding. But other than that I haven’t had much in the way of symptoms of cirrhosis and am considered to be compensated.
The liver itself has no pain receptor nerves but every internal organ has a membrane surrounding it which does have pain receptor nerves. In cirrhosis the liver can swell and this can cause pressure against the membrane surrounding the liver this can cause some pain sensations.
As you have cirrhosis you should be under the care of a hepatologist associated with a liver transplant center. Are you seeing this type of doctor?
Have you treated your hep c to eridicate the virus with one of the new medicines approved by the FDA? There have been many new medicines approved beginning in 2014. Treating and curing your hep c will prevent further progression of liver damage. Some people may even see some improvement in the condition of their livers.
You said “I have hep C and cirrhosis more than 20 years.”. Do you mean have had both Hepatitis c and liver cirrhosis for 20 years? Or hep c for 20 years and cirrhosis for less time?
How were you diagnosed with cirrhosis? I was diagnosed as fibrosis score (F4) with a liver biopsy in January 2008.
Have you had any symptoms of cirrhosis like ascities, esophageal varicies or hepatic encephalopathy? Are you having abdominal ultrasounds and blood testing for AFP every 6 months to monitor for early indication of HCC ( liver cancer)? Have you had any upper endoscopies? Do you know your MELD score? Are you on the liver transplant list?
Anyway best of luck to you let me know if you have any questions.
The liver itself has no pain receptor nerves but every internal organ has a membrane surrounding it which does have pain receptor nerves. In cirrhosis the liver can swell and this can cause pressure against the membrane surrounding the liver this can cause some pain sensations.
As you have cirrhosis you should be under the care of a hepatologist associated with a liver transplant center. Are you seeing this type of doctor?
Have you treated your hep c to eridicate the virus with one of the new medicines approved by the FDA? There have been many new medicines approved beginning in 2014. Treating and curing your hep c will prevent further progression of liver damage. Some people may even see some improvement in the condition of their livers.
You said “I have hep C and cirrhosis more than 20 years.”. Do you mean have had both Hepatitis c and liver cirrhosis for 20 years? Or hep c for 20 years and cirrhosis for less time?
How were you diagnosed with cirrhosis? I was diagnosed as fibrosis score (F4) with a liver biopsy in January 2008.
Have you had any symptoms of cirrhosis like ascities, esophageal varicies or hepatic encephalopathy? Are you having abdominal ultrasounds and blood testing for AFP every 6 months to monitor for early indication of HCC ( liver cancer)? Have you had any upper endoscopies? Do you know your MELD score? Are you on the liver transplant list?
Anyway best of luck to you let me know if you have any questions.
1 Comments
Thank you for your answer, it meant so much to me, but I must be honest now, I am new here and my English is not that good so I can clearly write what s on my mind. So I said that I have Hep c, but sincerely..my boyfriend has it. He told me he was on Ribavirin therapy 10 years ago but it didn t work. Then he got cirrhosis and varices too..Three years ago, he took new therapy with 3 medicine conbined, but that was unsuccessful too. In our country there is no possibility to have a transplantation..and there are no new and better medicines on our health insurance list. We have no money to pay for it. So he is tryin to help himself alone and eat healthy food(he is vegan), took cordiceps and silimarin,Suberian chaga and so..Now his results are not so good, alt and ast high, platelets low..and The liver is palpated 2 cm. He has pain in liver for few days periodically and I am very sad cause I can t help him. His doctor, hepatologist, told him to come for 2 months and that they are waiting for new medicins to come soon. If he cure hep c, what will happen with cirrhosis,? Can I hope he will live normal lifespan?
Thank you again for your precious answer...
Thank you again for your precious answer...
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