This is a shot in the dark maybe but i have copd as well as hep c and cirrhosis Ive been offered treatment of Harvoni and Riba but been told it can make you very breathless and mess with your oxygen levels, is there anyone here with COPD also and if so would you mind sharing your experiences of any reactions to your lungs, I'm a little scared of the riba but on the other hand im scared of the Cirrhosis and Hep C and want to get on with treatment, thanks for reading
good health sue_bun
Yes at the age of 54 I had Ribavarin and interferon for an entire year. Yes you will have breathing problems. I often thought that year I would die from treatment but I was not quitting. I walked on a cane 3 years after treatment because I had to. Then in 2008 I began to exercise, I am now a cyclist, age 64. My tratment did not kill my virus but I have geno type 1 and its the hardest to kill. I did a treatment in 2014 for 90 daus, Olysio and Solvaldi, killed the virus at age 62 but now have untreatable cancer. I am still a cyclist. How old are you? The virus will destroy every organ inside you. I fight to live now. Its a hard decision to treat it or not, I wish you luck. I have no regrets because what good would that do, I just live. I would only ever tell anyone not to take interferon or Olysio. But its not my choice otherwise. Good luck.
Hi Catfishjumping, i'm sorry its taken a while to get back to you, i believe we may have met on the COPD site? I'm sorry to hear about the untreatable cancer , i think its wonderful that you cycle and keep such a positive attitude, i can imagine that a year of Ribavarin and interferon was a complete nightmare for you and must have been a huge disappointment to find it had failed, i also have geno 1a, i have been denied other treatments over the past 11 years as a result of other health conditions, not copd, i have been offered 3 month Harvoni with Rivavirin, I'm 58 ive had the virus 30 years and my vl is 9 million so im told they want to hit it with large doses of ribavirin with the harvoni, i was just concerned of the hemoglobin dropping and causing oxygen problems for me, i have to wear a monitor at night because my sats drop bellow 88 and have dropped to the 70s while asleep because i have sleep apnea, i think harvoni on its own has a 96 per cent success rate but 100 percent with the riba, its gonna be a big decision for me but whatever happens i wont be turning treatment down, thanks very much for your input.
i wish you health and happiness sue_bun
Ah that is a huge decision. When I relented and did the last treatment of Solvaldi and Olysio, I had just almost died back to back two times all in 3 weeks. I never hear about them using interferon or olysio any longer. So there must be a good reason why they want to still treat so many with Riba. That so concerns me your monitor and breathing problems. Do you have any energy even for walking or yoga, they would help with breathing. I would struggle with breathing if I did not cycle, many times I cycle just so my breathing returns. It really works within minutes for me. I always knew on riba and interferon i could quit any time I chose to. You have that option if your breathing becomes a larger issue. Its all a rough road to travel. Everyday, even during the day I wonder if its my last but then I give that thought up and use it as a reminder, it could be so enjoy! My problems are huge but I do not have to think long before I am in gratitude because the world is chock full of humans forced into enduring things far harder than I am. Thank you for appreciating my efforts, that kind of understanding is what gets me up and back on that bike on trails in the woods or in traffic on the highway. Bless you...
Nooo catfishjumpin Bless you really, i feel the same the world is full of people suffering, and we can all find someone, somewhere like you if we look hard enough who is an inspiration you really are.
and the body does hear the mind, so staying as positive as possible is the best thing a person can do for themselves, saying that, there is no shame in needing a little shunt now and again, we can all be vulnerable at any age and we all get scared then brave then scared again, and brave, that's whats so wonderful about us human beens lol
i do use a leg cycle thingy i sit on a chair and just keep going until my puffs gone, just to keep the blood moving as best as possible, i can walk for about a mile but its hard, things will get better if my sleep gets better, but harvoni causes insomnia, so it will be 3 steps forward 2 back at first i think, but I'm sure I'll kill the little beggars in the end, im lucky in a way i have been offered harvoni its the newest drug out and has a great success rate so i guess ill be on treatment soon and ill let you know how i get on, in the meantime catfishjumpin keep on cycling and keep jumping out of that water for air, and you will surprise us all because you are inspiring.
bless you sue_bun-hugs
Wow I can cycle on that vibe you've sent for sure. Thanks! I am happy to hear you too are doing all you can. Its been a weepy day for me, they come, they go, the tears. It sounds like Harvoni from all I hear is working for all! I wanted to wait for that drug as Olysio surely has a ton of mercury in it. We were not allowed in sunlight for that 90 day treatment so I cycled at night and loved riding the shore in pitch black with bike lights at 9:00...i bet they never use Olysio ever again! It was a trial drug that my insurance paid $90,000 for. I am or was a professional photograher in my life time and I know all about Mercury, its light sensitive and very dangerous. It kept me from sleeping at night. My cortisol levels went sky high on it now cancer keeps that level too high. 42 years is a long time and some do end up with cancer from the virus so its not really for me to insist the Olysio caused my cancer. I have a feeling you are going to do well even if it is hard and be cured. I would like to follow your treatment posts if its ok with you and keep up with how you are doing. Aloha
oh yeah catfishjumping i meant to say that they use riba to give the harvoni extra strength, also its relatively cheap next to 6 months of harvoni at about 40 grand, i don't know how it works exactly but i don't think their using interferon much any more at all now, ill check on that in case i'm wrong they have these new drugs i pill a day, plus the dreaded riba can knock it out in 8 weeks for some people, its such a shame they didn't have it when you first had treatment i cant imagine having to stick needles in myself for a year just to feel ill all day,for a year must of been really hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, i bet and crushing to find out there wasn't a light there at all i don't know what Olysio, is but its sounds pretty toxic you must have felt Poissoned for the whole year, my heart goes out to you, but you just keep going cos I'm looking forward to lots of conversations during the lovely summer months about your cycling adventures.
and you obviously have heeps to offer the world.
blessings sue_bun-hugs
I have been now two weeks on Ribavarin plus other anti-virals.
I do not have COPD diagnosed but I do have chronic bronchitis.
I am 69 years old and recovering from a Hepatic resection 3 months ago, I had an operable HCC.
I went swimming on Wednesday, first time since the op, and I don't feel any worse with my breathing.
The more you worry about it the worse it will get, anxiety causes breathing disturbance, that is well known.
Never mind the gloom and doom, that will only bring you down.
If you expect bad side effects, you will surely have them.
Think positive.
thanks for your reply Pateo sorry to hear you had to have Hepatic resection, and its great that your swimming, i am not in a place of doom and gloom, im made up that Ive been offered my treatment at last after 11 years on the list, ribervirins own guidelines do say that people with lung or heart issues need to be monitored closely due to hemoglobin dropping, and my sats drop a lot already during the night,due to sleep apnoea, at present i stop breathing about 12 times an hour, i will be getting a cpap machine this April, and i believe that side affects are different for everyone and a matter of biology, tho i will concur that panicking can cause breathing problems, i should have said i am concerned rather than scared i think, my fault,
thanks for your reply wishing you continued good health, and very best results with your treatment.
sue_bun
Sue Bun, I did not suggest that you were in a place of Gloom and Doom; I said, take no notice ( of people who report bad side effects.)
That is the problem with this kind of fora; we get mainly the problems and pitfalls; the successes are getting on with life elsewhere.
Additionally, I understand that the really bad effects of Ribavirin were from the time when it was used in conjunction with the interferons, which is rarely, if at all , the case these days.
That was apparently the scene with Catfishjumping and ten years ago.
Nobody can predict what bad side effects any individual will have, we are all different, different genes, different illness along with Hep.C, also having different combinations along with the Ribavirin.
So, I repeat, don't imagine that this or that will definitely happen; it won't necessarily. Side-effects are not compulsory.
I believe everybody on Ribavirin has to be monitored for possible anaemia, whatever their state of health and fitness.
My blood is being checked every two weeks.
I don't know why you are sorry I had a resection; I am jolly glad, actually. 
hi sue , I have just come to the stage of being told I have 6 months of ribavirin and interferon I also have copd and asthma , I was just wondering how you are getting on with your treatment , I like a lot of others am also a tad scared of the side effects especially to do with breathing ,hope this finds you well thank you
mick
Hi Mick, I have still not been able to start treatment due to waiting for maxiofacial to take out 6 teeth as i have very bad oral problems, that will be happening next Wednesday, after a week of healing up my mouth I will start treatment, so I will keep you informed, I believe that the drugs I will be taking will be easier than Interferon, Ill be on ribavirin and Harvoni, my Nurse tells me that they keep a strict eye on your hemoglobin levels especially if you have any lung issues, you are welcome to mail me privately if you like and we can keep each other informed ect, I have bought a hemaglobin monitor from easylife just for my own ease of mind really. i hope it all goes well for you.
all the best Mick sue
Hi SUE
Thank you for your swift reply ,sorry to hear your treatment hasn't started yet but glad it wont be to long a wait , I feel a bit easier knowing a bit more of the facts and knowing that I'm not alone with this horrible disease , I wish you all the best and will try to keep in touch with progress , again thank you .
mick
RECENTLY FOUND OUT MY HUSBAND HAS STAGE 3 CIRRHOSIS OF THE LIVER...TODAY!!!!
Hep c treatment employment and allowance benefits stopped 
