Billy why would you? There are better treatments coming out in six months. You should search the discussions here and talk to Marilyn.
She is also HCV pos post transplant.
http://www.dailystrength.org/people/478736

Billy,
I think most will recommend to wait if you can. Can you elaborate more on why your doctor is recommending you start in August instead of waiting for newer drugs?

Bob

Just as an FYI, my cousin had HCV and needed a liver transplant. He got the new liver about a year ago, and immediately started triple, along with anti rejection meds

He's now SVR

My very limited understanding is that the required anti rejection drugs will actually promote the growth of the HCV virus. So possibly you need to start some HCV treatment before the virus starts slamming the new liver

joe

The reason the doctor wants me to start the treatment now is because I am in stage 2-3 of fibrosis, and my ast and alt stays around 470 for ast and 640 for alt. he recommends I don't wait for the new treatment but I recommend that I do.

You sound just like Marilyn. She was going to start triple but her Dr. now is going to start her on non interferon in Dec.
She is the person to talk to!
I gave you her profile link. ...talk!

Marilyn and I have the same doctor. LOL!!.

Then you have one of the best Dr.s You are a lucky guy and would do well to take his advice.
Best of luck.

Billy,

Your doctor knows best. Some people make it through treatment with "mild" side effects, but others like myself have a very rough time. The best advice I can give you is to drink water all day every day, sleep as much as you can, and get as much support from your family, your doctor and here online as you can.

Good luck.

Bob

Billy...the triple comes with the "Black Box" warning for a reason. Even if you hassle trough the treatment it creates an unwanted number of side effects, triggers all kind of issues , if not the Incivek you will get the issue with the Interferon. Your skin ages 10 years, muscle tissue dies, hair goes, and arthritis is could be on its way. My left shoulder is in major pain as soon as i lift my arm. If not life and death for you...wait until December. The treatment is a way better, nicer , gentler with out the dead man warning. Top of that is a 12 week treatment what i heard. If the doctor can really reason it, it takes some time to go to one stage to the next. My friend did 8 weeks with Gilead (she dropped out) and still today Undetected. She was stage 4 prior to treatment.She is doing real well and her liver is regenerating . Healthy cells are growing again.Wait until December...the best advise we can give you.

Hey Billy!

I was also gonna go on triple too... And I was the main person in here who has helped Marilyn with her decision not to treat right away...

Why do I say that? Ohh, could it possibly be that I have been post transplant for over 15 years, or have most of everybody in here forgot about that tiny little fact! I mean I have been here @ DS since 2009 and yet when it comes to transplant issues nowadays, everybody is referring to Marilyn? Well, who do you think she used to ask for advice when she first started posting here? That's right people! It was me - HANK remember folks?? Ohh I almost forgot! It's brain fog causing everyone to forget about me - I see!!!

Now that I got that off my proverbial chest, what it comes down to is this Billy... There are now something like six different types of anti-rejection drugs and depending on what brand of direct acting antiviral the patient is put on, the addition of that specific part of the triple treatment will play an important part in how your body and your immune system will react...

For example; with teleprevir/VX-950, otherwise known as Incivek, the amount of anti-rejection drug that one may have to take may have to be decreased because the interaction makes the Prograf 70x more potent. If you're on Prograf, your hepatologist and transplant doctor will switch you to cyclosporine and Myfortic, or Rapamune or any of the other available immuno-suppressants.

Here's a link to transplant buddies which is also a forum dedicated to transplant patients:

http://www.transplantbuddies.org/tbx/messages/5358/502693.html?1330476021

Now Boceprevir is more tolerable for transplant patients on Prograf but since I was already close to 15 years post transplant and my body had gotten used to being on Prograf, I didn't want to take a chance on taking either drug because of the increased risk of both causing another rejection episode which can be fatal to say the least especially for us old timers like myself...

However, since you haven't had your transplant as long, your chances of clearing are much better if the above is your scenario and you can more easily be switched to another anti-rejection drug without worry of the significant and potentially fatal side effects that can occur with both of these protease inhibitors known as Incivek (Teleprevir) and Victrelis (Boceprevir).

Now I don't know what your anti-rejection therapy you're on so I'm just using Prograf as one example and the results may be totally different with any other anti-rejection therapy...

I was transplanted @ UPMC University of Pittsburgh Medical Center which is the most experienced transplant center in both North and South America since the the first successful transplants that lasted over 1 year were performed by the father of liver transplantation, Doctor Thomas E. Starzyl who is - well just ask your transplant doctor who he is and also ask him if he has had the pleasure to know Dr, John Fung who's innovative research in immunology pioneered all of the other anti-rejection drugs besides cyclosporine and was also the director of transplantation after Dr Starzyl retired so, I think I can qualify as someone who has been educated by some of the best in this lovely planet of ours!

Seriously,
You should be alright if you really need to treat because of the damage already done to your liver post transplant but if it's not so bad, then wait until the better drugs come out and while you're at it, look at those clinical trials I posted for you in your other thread...

Bottom line is this... Your Choice! Make it a good one!

Respectfully,
HANK

Oh, and Dr Fung is currently the director of transplantation @ The Cleveland Clinic which is known world wide as one of the leading teaching hospitals on the planet and on par with the Mayo Clinic and John Hopkins... He was my transplant surgeon along with Dr Cassavilla who is currently the director of Argentina's premier transplant center and who called me from Machu Picchu the following morning after my own transplant to find out how I was doing in the ICU!

I was blessed to know those folks who are regular folks like you and I and not the snobs that some doctor tend to become once they're recognized. All the best to you Billy!

Respectfully,
HANK

Here are some more links:

http://www.hivandhepatitis.com/hepatitis-c/hepatitis-c-topics/hcv-treatment/4104-easl-2013-triple-therapy-for-hepatitis-c-is-effective-after-liver-transplantation-but-comes-with-side-effects

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3277201/

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Liver-Transplant/Incivek-for-transplant-patients/show/1557502

http://www.infohep.org/Triple-therapy-for-hepatitis-C-is-effective-after-liver-transplantation-but-side-effects-are-common/page/2653885/

http://pi.vrtx.com/files/canadapm_telaprevir_en.pdf

http://www.hepmag.com/articles/2501_23899.shtml

http://icuredhepc.blogspot.com/2012/09/meet-patti-3-time-null-responder-liver.html

Well, that's it for now Billy... Enjoy the reading ! ;>) ;>) ;>)

Respectfully,
HANK

Hank I certainly haven't forgotten about you. It's just that recent events have been about Marilyn Dr steering her towards starting triple and then suddenly changing course to wait for all oral treatment.
As always thanks for all your valuable contributions!

Wait if you can. The current triple treatments are effective, but pretty tough to tolerate for 24-48 weeks, and have long-lasting side-effects.

I waited three years to start, and I would have waited two more if I could have. Interferon is bad news...

It is getting confusing about the warehousing for new drugs. You have a great doctor. I know a few who have treated on triple with the a transplant. They cleared the virus and are SVR.

You've heard from all the experts here. It is great that you are researching though. It is an agonizing decision. I was esld and fretted about it for months. I jumped on the triple when the doc gave me a thumbs up. I really don't know that I would be here if my liver had not gotten the break.
All my best to you, Karen:)