I don't know much about it yet, but I didn't have to have a biopsy and I am starting tx really soon.

for me I don't need to know how bad my liver is only that what can I do to make it better. so that is what I am working on.

thanks for your input mike. i will put qs to the doc on friday when i'm back there and perhaps post his response.
i know they do a blood test (think its called fibrosure test - or something like that) and its supposed to do the job of a biopsy and portray, quite accurately, (apparently) the state of the liver. i think i had one of those, but dont know the results. grrrrrr! lol.. i guess i had better ask that one too.
will keep you posted.
in the meantime, be happy, stay positive and keep smiling.
x

Pepy what week are you into tx, is it 17 I don't recall???

Now if you didn't have a biopsy, they must have done somekind of ultrasound or the fibrosure test cause they have all this information on your liver status.

Everyone doing treatment should have what they call the Gold Standard way to get the exact grade and stage of liver damage, which is THE BIOPSY.

No other test is accurate like the BIOPSY.
Now if you are indeed at week 17, and they checked on your liver to see if the meds were decompensating your liver, then you must be fine, but do make sure they did check on that!

Keep up that possitive attitude it's half the battle my love.

I am here for you, love & respect.
Mckenzie
One day at the time.

Hi, i was given a fibro-scan (bumpscan) which was brand spanker at the royal free in London.
I was told they didnt need to do a biopsy as this was accurate enough.
I posted, like you have and everyone advised me to have a biopsy done.
I am 3/4 of the way throu tx at the moment and i am thinking of insisting on one when i finish.

hey mckenzie.... i have just started tx last friday. i wish i was at week 17!!! lol
yes i did have lotsa scans, mris, some with contrast, some without and i did have the fibrosure test, but dont know the results. i was just told that i have portal hypertension, varices and cirrhosis..... it also showed that the liver, spleen and kidneys were enlarged and that the liver showed several lesions. so, i had more tests to see if the lesions were cancer......luckily they werent. they were calcium deposits. i have to say that when they found calcium deposits i was surprised they didnt then want to do a biopsy cos it was cos of calcium deposits that they found my breast ca, but apparently the deposits must cluster in a certain way to depict ca. it does seem logical to me that they should have done a biopsy, but they assured me that they have enough information from the tests performed to evaluate my liver. and no, its not in a good state apparently. i am in the advanced stages they tell me, which is y i have to do the year or 18mths tx and i had to battle to get tx cos of the state of my liver.
well thats my story. sorry to bore you all. i seem to waffle quite a bit since i started tx. lol
good idea faithless. methinks i might ask for one at end of tx.
biopsy or not seems to be a never ending question mark here on ds with different parts of the medical world having different ideas. i will put all of this to my hep doc on fri and post again with his comments.
thank you all for your input and help.
good luck all.
lov ya
x

You might want to look into diet and nutrition to heal your liver and take the load off of it.
I was really sick with Hep C from 3/2005 until 3/2008. I did not do treatment, I felt for sure that it would kill me, as I already had most of the side effects of treatment from the virus and the stress I was under.

I changed my life! I was already eating pretty well, but I really studied and learned about the liver and I take supplements and really watch what I eat.

I have a group dedicated to helping people through diet and nutrition.
http://dailystrength.org/groups/whats-cooking
You're welcome to come and join.

makiah, i know what u mean bout sides. lol i was getting them all for a good year prior to tx commencing. thanks for info bout diet. will check out the site. glad its helped u and hope it continues to help.
stay positive my friend and keep smiling:)
x

I was only given a scan and they could tell the state of my liver from that and blood tests. Take care on your journey, Lorraine

I not from the U.K., but I thought your need a biopsy to know if you had Cirrhosis. An ultrasound can show scaring,fatty liver and tumor, your probably need at biopsy to show more, its not need to start tx. If I was you I would ask Mckenzie she know alot more then me.

thanks for your info lor and gator:)
i went to hepatologist today for 2nd shot and got some questions answered.
SO! here goes:
1. why didnt i have a biopsy? "because the fibro scans and all other tests showed us the information we needed and we decided that the biopsy wouldnt really give us much more information and would be too dangerous for you to go through with it, given the state of your liver.
2. what state is my liver in? a very bad state.
3. do u know what stage and grade i am at? "yes. u r at fibrosure stage 6"
4. of? "6"
he said that if my liver wasnt in such a bad state they would have carried out a biopsy but because they already knew i was at stage 6, not only was it too dangerous, but there was no point in doing a biopsy. the important thing was to get on with treatment asap. Hah! thats a joke! lol....... i've been waiting since january for tx to start cos thats when he told me that i should start immediately.
he tells me that i have a chance, but just a chance that the tx might work, but if it doesnt, then i should expect to go into liver failure. wowee!!!!!! theres a surprise! lol after all this time i finally get the truth outa the docs. but hey, you know what?????? i have a chance and i'm gonna beat this dragon right outa my system. i am feeling positive, strong, still smiling and ever more determined.
these answers have clarified my particular situation, but each of us are different and at different stages and i guess the real answer is to get a good hepatologist, ask lotsa questions, listen to the response and take his advice.
stay strong and positive everyone and whatever the case keep smiling cos a smile does make u feel better:)
i'm here for you all:)
luv ya
x

sorry i made a mistake. i thought the doc said fibrosure stage 6 but it was fibrosis stage 6.
in the uk the scoring system they use is the "Ishak Stage" system and that goes up to 6.
i think in the us they use the "Knodell fribrosis" stage.
i will try and get the website address which shows the two different scoring systems.
hope it helps all
luv ya
x

heres the link i promised:

http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:tW7jidDS6GMJ:www.bsg.org.uk/pdf_word_docs/postgrad_06e.ppt+the+six+fibrosis+stages+of+liver+disease+in+uk&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=uk&client=firefox-a

hope you can open it and hope it helps:)
take care all, sleep tight or have a good day depending where u r in the world. lol i'm off to get some shut eye:)
x

Hi pepy. I have end stage cirrhosis or stage 5. I have not had a biopsy because the doctor can tell enough by my symptoms and a CT Scan I did to cancel out cancer. They could see the rough edges of the liver in the scan. At the best if I had a biopsy I am still a stage 4 but the GI doesnt think so. It is my understanding fibrosis turns into cirrhosis. I copied and article off another board to explain it from a doctor below.

Due to my symptoms of portal hypertension in the esophagus, acites, edema, and muscle wasting, due to not processing my protein properly, shows them how bad my liver is. They refuse to put me on treatment for hep c as you noted it may progress the cirrhosis and make me worse fast. No biopsy because the symptoms above tell them enough and no reason to take the chance of the liver biopsy as I may bleed too much and it may not be stoppable.

It sounds like you found the answers from your doctor already but I posted just in case something may help. If nothing else you are not in this alone. Bless you.


Copied:
Chronic liver diseases lead to fibrosis which can lead to the portal hypertension, changes in the liver architecture and may produce such an irreversible rearrangement of the circulation as to cause cirrhosis. These liver diseases can cause necrosis, collapse and scar formation which can also lead to fibrosis.

Cirrhosis is the end-stage progression of fibrosis, and is defined as characterized by irreversible scarring of the liver and impaired liver function.

Some cases of early fibrosis may be reversible with the elimination of the inciting cause.

Follow up with your personal physician is essential.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.

thanks alias for that:) sorry u cant go on tx. i can understand the dangers but i dont understand y they will tx me and not u if your stage if 5 and mine 6??? are u on the transplant list? i'm not a candidate for a transplant cosof everything else thats going on in my body.
but hey! all is not lost. my hepatologist told me today that they are finding recently that the liver can repair itself with cirrhosis in some cases. so thats my aim hon:) i'm gonna slay the beast and smooth over the scars. lol..... i gotta a pic in my head of what my livers gotta do. if tx dont work, then i guess i'll have to pray for a lottery win cos stem cell transplants boasting 80% success rate can be done in russia for a mere 125000.
try and stay positive my friend and even tho its hard at times, try too to keep smiling:)
i'm here for you hon:)
x