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When Should Treatment for Hepatitis C Begin?

There are many things to be considered once a person is diagnosed with the Hepatitis C virus. The most important is the decision on treatment. Some health care providers will suggest starting treatment immediately while others will prefer to wait. If the progression of the liver disease is very mild and the patient appears to be in overall good health the physician may suggest that the first step is some basic lifestyles changes, regular monitoring including blood work twice yearly and a liver biopsy every few years. These options are more often the ones chosen when the patient is not complaining of symptoms but was diagnosed when seeing their health care provider for another reason.

The first thing that will be recommended is the lifestyle changes. These include no more alcohol, stop smoking, eating healthy which includes more fruits and vegetables in the diet and lots of fluids, start a light exercise program and get plenty of sleep.

One of the reasons for delaying treatment is that many doctors are concerned about the side effects of the drug therapy. They feel that if the patient is in the early stages of Hepatitis C that this therapy is unnecessary until they begin having symptoms. Other doctors will tell their patients that this is the perfect time to start the drug therapy while they are not symptomatic and so their bodies are stronger and more able to stand the rigors of the therapy. They want their patients to beat the Hepatitis C when it is first discovered. Other health care providers feel that with new drugs on the horizon, expected in the next four years, that are supposed to be easier on the patient its better to wait.

Sometimes doctors feel that the treatment may be as potentially dangerous as the illness. This can be true for patients who already have serious medical issues to deal with. This includes those who have cancer, not related to their livers, heart disease, and kidney failure or lung disease. Patients who are in their seventies or older are almost always not treated. If the disease is discovered that late then it is not likely to be life threatening to the patient since it can take ten to forty years for serious liver damage to occur.

If during this period of monitoring the patient's viral load, the mount of the virus that can be detected in the person's blood, rises, then there is no alternative but to begin treatment. The health care provider will check the liver, by means of a biopsy or x-ray to determine if its showing signs of swelling, scarring or dysfunction. If treatment must begin, and you are even a social drinker, you must not have had any alcohol for at least six months before the drug therapy can start. You must also agree that you and your partner, if you are in a steady relationship, will both use birth control during treatment and for six months after as the drugs can cause birth defects.