NUMBER OF YEARS FROM NAFLD TO NASH FOR WOMEN ?

[ScaryQuestions]

FATTY LIVER FOR 3 YEARS

ULTRASOUND FOUND:

MILD FATTY LIVER

BLOOD TEST : ALT 72

HOW LONG TILL SOMEONE GETS NASH FOR ANY WOMEN THAT HAD NAFLD AND NOW NASH ?

SORRY ITS A VERY SPECIFIC QUESTION

WHATS THE NUMBER OF YEARS FROM NAFLD TO NASH FOR WOMEN

ANY OF YOU WOMEN OUT THERE 😊

OR NFLAD TO END STAGE .

THANK YOU

[Hidden]

Hi

I got Nash 6 months after nafld, compensated cirrhosis 3 years 3 months though I do think I had cirrhosis first. Please take care and stay safe. Love and hugs Lynne xxxx

[Alterity]

I think it is probably different which each person and I don't think they have known that much about fatty liver and Nash until the last 10 years. When I had gallbladder surgery in 1983 the doctors said I had fat around my liver, no one told me or red flagged it, I just read it in my reports years later. I was never told anything until 2001 when I had gastric by pass surgery which they aborted because they said I had the worst looking liver they had ever seen. So that was 18 years later. It's now 2020 another 19 years and I'm now on the research meds. So you might as well say 40 years for me and still going.

[ScaryQuestions in reply to Alterity]

Interesting. Thank you so much for your reply.

I thought would be varied.

Hope to get alot of replies and maybe see if there's an average amount of years ?

Will see

[Splodge60]

Please be aware that Fatty Liver and its ultimate consequences are different for everyone. You may be diagnosed with NAFLD and never move on to the more serious NASH. Fatty Liver in itself is not on some kind of statistical linear line. What does exist is a hypothetical continuum that, theoretically should go something like this -

NAFLD then NASH, then FIBROSIS, then CIRRHOSIS, then LIVER CANCER and then DEATH. However, there are two factors that MUCK UP this simple plan

1). You can miss out on any of these stages. You can have NAFLD all your life and it never, ever gets any worse. You can have Cirrhosis but it does not always lead to Cancer or early Death. Never make the mistake of thinking that, because you have been diagnosed with Fatty Liver, this means you are doomed!!!!! I have read comments from so many people on this Forum who are panicking and terrified because they are diagnosed with NAFLD. It is not necessary to be so scared.

2). The disorder of NASH is also called Fatty Liver Disease, even by some so-called Specialists in the field, which is why people get so confused. However, NASH is significantly more serious because of its level of impact on, not just the Liver, but on the rest of the body as well.

3). The Liver specialists generally do NOT yet understand how or why NAFLD progresses to NASH in some people and not in others.

4). Diagnoses of NASH is usually only definitive, after having a Biopsy. There are newer methods making diagnosis quicker and less intrusive nowadays. I had my Biopsy in 2003, as a result of having routine LFTs done when I moved home and registered with a new GP surgery. I have no idea if I was EVER diagnosed with NAFLD. It is not on my medical record. From this you learn that there are probably no accurate progression dates in any person’s medical records with movement through the (hypothetical) linear stages I mentioned above.

5). Because my health began to markedly deteriorate about 3 years ago (and the Liver Consultant discharged me years before), I asked my GP for a re-referral to the Consultant, with a view to ascertaining if my liver had moved on to Fibrosis. I already knew I needed a Fibroscan to determine such a diagnosis. Imagine my surprise then to learn (online via Patient Access), that the Fibroscan did not reveal Fibrosis , but the much more serious- CIRRHOSIS!!!!! The details of that story are written elsewhere on the Forum.

6). The vital thing here is that - I may have had Fibrosis for a long time but wasn’t aware, simply because I was not adequately monitored for quite a few years. Additionally, neither myself, nor the clinicians involved in my care, have got the slightest idea how long I have had Cirrhosis.

7). Furthermore, I managed to have a phone call with the Consultant on Friday last (first time of speaking in 9 months). His attitude left a lot to be desired. I would even go as far as saying he was somewhat patronising. He relies totally and exclusively for his clinical assessment, on the results of LFTs and also on the results of US scans. He has never once carried out a physical exam, particularly regarding my abdomen which is very painful. Two weeks earlier, my GP was greatly concerned and, under different circumstances would have sent me to hospital, but decided to wait to see what the Consultant said.

8). The next logical step, one could argue is whether I need to be fully assessed for Liver CANCER. To leave him responsible for my health is now no longer tenable. I complained about him once. I cannot face going down that road again. This time I had to ask him to refer me for Palliative Care. He forced me to justify why I felt that was necessary. Well, surely Hepatic Encephalopathy doesn’t help me, which I’ve had for over a year!!! My body is deteriorating rapidly. I have had 57 abnormal blood test results in the last 15 months. I said to him that you cannot support me adequately and I need to talk to someone about what I feel is coming sooner as each day passes, ie. my imminent demise. It does not help my case that I had a history of depression so he hints at that every time there is communication between us.

To sum up then, you will never get a straight-forward answer to your question simply because of the points I have raised. I hope this explains and thereby help you.

Best wishes xx

[Kitkatnash]

I was diagnosed as NASH in 2014. I was not a drinker, drug taker, and as an adult was athletic. I have had binge eating disorder since a child and that is my direct cause of liver NASH. I believe if Liver disease had been on the radar for children I would have been diagnosed with a fatty liver early in life. I ate large quantities of sweets without restriction at home was only overweight by a few pounds over the years. Now if you think of me eating large quantities of sugar for years and then being diagnosed with NASH in 2014 it makes sense to me. Since then I have had poor monitoring from health care. I go to the VA and I get the responses many of us get when we see the doctor. My issue with the VA is why they haven't hospitalized me for my binge eating disorder since it has destroyed my liver. So far they have referred me to weight loss programs which I , of course , fail and then feel more miserable. The latest from this week is they plan to try a controlled drug for binge eating disorder. I am worried I am adding another pressure to my liver but the drug description says it is eliminated through the kidneys. I am disheartened by a lack of support. My husband acts like a enabler and brings home sweets when he knows I have an addiction. Who knows why. So I hope you have learned that each of us is different and progress can be slow. The best care I hear about is if you can get to be a patient with a hepatologist so I hope that happens for you. Blessings to you each and every day.

[Splodge60 in reply to Kitkatnash]

I appreciate your comments and understand what you mean. Are you in the UK??? What is the VA??? In the UK where I live, I am constantly made aware that the Liver Consultants per se leave a lot to be desired, when it comes to diagnosis, treatment and even caring for these difficult issues confronting patients with liver disease. It is something that does need to be addressed which is why this Forum is so helpful. Good luck to you on your journey because we all need help and support