Cirrhosis Support Group

Cirrhosis is a consequence of chronic liver disease, most commonly caused by alcoholism and hepatitis C. Ascites is the most common complication of cirrhosis and is associated with a poor quality of life, increased risk of infections, and a poor long term outcome. Liver damage from cirrhosis cannot be reversed, but treatment can stop or delay further progression and...

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biopsy

beanhook
beanhook
Hello everyone! I need some advice. I was diagnosed October 16, 2013 with cirrhosis of unknown cause. I had a biopsy at that time that confirmed cirrhosis. I recently called to schedule my 6 month ultrasound and was told my doctor wanted me to have another biopsy. My labs and previous ultrasounds have all been good. He said nothing was wrong but he wanted to see if my liver was healing itself. He believes that it is because all my test have been very good. I feel great but I am concerned about having the biopsy. Kinda the "if it aint broke dont fix it" mentality. I dont want to risk getting an infection or making my liver angry by taking pieces of it. Have any of you had a 2nd biopsy after diagnosis? Do I really need to do this? I would appreciate any thoughts or opinions any of you have. This board has been quiet for quite some time. I hope everyone is doing well.
Trissa01
Trissa01
Very surprised he wants another biopsy. Your insurance would pay for that?
Scarred tissue will not improve. What gets better, is the remaining healthier tissue carries the load, so your liver can "get better" - labs will look better, you'll feel better.
None of the scarred tissue is going to suddenly become healthy tissue, it will never become healthy tissue. There is no blood supply to it. Look at your skin. That terrible laceration you got ten, twenty years ago is still scarred, right? You can still find that small pox vaccination scar on your arm decades later? It seems to fade because the surrounding tissues are healthy and old dead cells slough off.
The best way to determine your current liver health is your lab work. there also are non invasive exams like fibro test & CTscans.
Perhaps you could ask the doctor to re clarify and explain? And let us know?
Trissa01
Trissa01
I had one biopsy in 2009 before I became (well compensated) cirrhotic. I will never have another biopsy unless they have evidence of hepatic cancer.
beanhook
beanhook
Thank you Trissa. I thought the same thing. I know the scarring will never go away so I really don't understand the need for another biopsy. I asked him when I had the first biopsy how much scarring there was. All he would say was "quite a bit." I questioned his nurse again about this one and she said the only way to tell what condition my liver is in is to do another biopsy. As I mentioned, all my labs and ultrasounds have been normal. I cancelled the biopsy. I dont want to risk infection just to satisfy his curiousity. If I had a logical explanation as to why it was needed I would do it. Oh, I have not spoken directly to him yet. This all happened over the phone with his nurse. I am going to schedule an appointment with him and I will let you know how it goes. Thanks again for your input!