Treating
Hep C

When most patients come in, they're afraid. They're afraid of what this diagnosis means, and it's our job to let them know that there is a cure. I'm Dr. Tony Martinez and I've been treating patients with hepatitis C for about 13 years now. Once a patient is diagnosed with hepatitis C, it's essential that they get linked to care, specifically with a hepatitis C Specialist. Now, that individual may be from infectious diseases, may be somebody from GI or hepatology, it may even be a primary care provider who's become a Hep C champion.

My name is Dr. Catherine Frenette. I've been practicing hepatology for about 15 years now. The best part of my job is being able to see people every day, and to help them through some of the scariest times of their entire life.

We really make the biggest connection that we can with each individual patient. The more that we are involved in their process, engaged in their lives, the better the outcomes are going to be.

The liver is the coolest organ in the body. It functions as a factory, first of all; it makes different proteins that are necessary for us to live. Every organ in the body is affected if the liver isn't working well. Left untreated, hepatitis C can cause cirrhosis. It can cause liver cancer. You could need a liver transplant. You could even die from hepatitis C.

How you got it isn't important to us. The fact that you're chronically infected, you now need to take the next step and engage in treatment to get cured.

Hepatitis C treatment has changed drastically in the last five years. We now have what are called direct-acting antivirals. These are medicines that come in pill form, and they directly inhibit the virus from making more viruses.

Hepatitis C is one of the few disease states in modern history where we've gone from discovery, in roughly 1990, to cure in a 25-year period.

This is not like interferon treatment. This is not like the old treatments that we used to have. This is a completely different world.

Short treatment regimens, sometimes as few as 8 weeks, in the majority of cases 12 weeks, and very high cure rates.

We're curing, you know, over 9 out of 10 people. 95% of people. It's really amazing.

The paradigm has changed completely. Now, day by day, we're curing multiple patients. They can leave this piece of them behind.

This virus can really affect your life if you don't take care of it. But it's so easy to treat now. My job is to help you through this. And we will get through this.

You know, a lot of times in medicine, you can't fix things. In this circumstance, you can fix something.

There's really no reason, in this day and age, that you shouldn't see a specialist and be treated immediately.

One afternoon, my phone rang, and my doctor was very happy to report that I no longer had hepatitis C virus in my bloodstream. She was as happy, I think, as I was.

It was a moment of speechlessness. Needless to say, I slept real well that night, I slept real well that night.

Being cured of Hep C? My greatest emotion? Gratitude. I feel like I can live my life like I did before I heard that I had Hep C.

Sounds cliche, but it's like having the weight of the world…(lifted gesture)

It's a feeling of elation to have that burden removed. It's a feeling of joy unspeakable.

It is absolutely worth it to get cured of Hep C.

You need to check with your doctor. You need to see what treatment is available for you that will help you.

I'm looking forward to doing some more ballroom dancing.

Definitely looking forward to retiring in the next year and a half.

The biggest part of my life right now has got to be my family, my granddaughters. That's, that's what brings me the most joy.

Don't feel ashamed.

You do not have to feel the way you're feeling. I'll tell anybody from the rooftop, that there is a cure for hepatitis C.