Right now, the treatment for Hep C is the best it has ever been. The most effective therapy is a combination of peg-interferon (pegylated interferon) and ribavirin. Peg-interferon is sometimes called Pegasys or Pegetron depending on the company that makes the drug.
Peg-interferon is given once a week by injection with a small needle (by a healthcare provider or by you). Ribavirin is taken every day in a pill form.
Dosages for the treatment are decided by your Hep C genotype and how much you weigh.
Length of treatment
How long you take the treatment depends on which genotype of hepatitis C virus you have.
- For genotype 1, which takes longer to respond to treatment, treatment is 48 weeks (about a year).
- For genotypes 2 and 3, which respond faster to treatment, treatment is 24 weeks (about six months).
- Genotypes 4, 5 and 6 are treated like genotype 1, about a year.
Your healthcare provider will be able to tell you which genotype you have. Most people in Canada have genotype 1.
Some people get what’s called a rapid virological response (RVR) or early virological response (EVR). This is a good sign that treatment is working. If you have EVR or RVR with genotype 2 or 3, you may be able to stop treatment after only 12 to 16 weeks. The doctor will let you know if this is happening and if therapy should be shortened. That’s why it’s important to get all the blood tests the doctor recommends.
Most people on treatment have side effects. For some people, the side effects bother them so much that they have to stop treatment. Some people are hardly bothered at all. Your doctor may be able to help with side effects by adjusting the dosages of your treatment or giving you other medications for the side effects.
Hep C Treatment Terms:
| Responder: a person who responds to Hep C treatment; their virus level drops during treatment. |
| Slow responder: a person for whom the treatment is working but slower than it does for other people. |
| Non-responder: a person for whom the Hep C treatment did not work. |
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