April
2002
Support Your Support Group -- April 17

What does I Will Survive do that works for you? And express your ideas about what else you'd like the group to do or what it could be doing better.

Upcoming Agendas:

May 15 -- Support Group Members Interact (No Guest Speaker)
Meeting Agenda:
6:30 p.m. (sharp) - Theme Song: I Will Survive
6:35 - 6:45 announcements
6:45 - 8:00 Support Your Support Group
8:00 - 8:30 (or earlier) questions/answers 'til we adjourn

June 18 -- To Be Announced
July 16 -- To Be Announced
August 20 -- To Be Announced
September 17 -- Dr. Gish
Sunday, April 28, 2002:

The California LiverWalk (organized by the American Liver Foundation) will be in Sacramento @ William Land Park. If you would like to participate, contact us by mail or email as noted.
More News
Our Meetings: Our Meetings: 3rd Wednesday of every month; at SCC (Sutter Cancer Center) classrooms 3&4 , 2800 L St (kitty corner across from the 2-story parking structure at 28th & L St. and across L St. from Sutter Hospital)
Contact Us: Phone number: (need volunteer)
Our Web Site> www.sacmall.net/transplant/hepc.html
Email: dck@innercite.com (include "I Will Survive" in subject line or your message might be delected before being read).

If you want to be included on our mailing/emailing list and you can afford to include a check, make it to Eve Cragen, Treasurer I Will Survive, P.O. Bx 2180, Loomis, CA 95650, for:
$24 if you want the Newsletter by U.S. mail
$15 if you get the Newsletter from the website (if you wish, each month we'll email a link to you)
$ 0 if, right now, you can't afford to pay dues. In which case "I Will Survive" will mail monthly Newsletters to you. Please contribute to the "Donations" Box at the meetings as you are able.

From the April 2002 HCV Advocate :
..At the end of 2001, in order to set its goals for 2002, the Hepatitis C Support Project (HCSP) conducted a needs assessment. It determined that the most needed resource currently is quality, unbiased HCV education that could be widely distributed and utilized (especially by underserved communities). To accomplish this objective, the HCSP designed and implemented a 2-day program that covers hepatitis C awareness, education and a "train the trainers" component. If you would like more information about this project, email sfhepcat@pacbell.net or mail HCSP, P.O. Bx 427037, San Francisco, CA 94142-7037.
..In the past, physicians have focused their attention on the patient's health as revealed by results of blood work, or outcomes from a treatment regimen or other variables. Patients have typically relied on their doctors for health decisions. The indicators that physicians looked to in the past have been found to have no correlation to patients feelings or perceptions of their disease and its impact upon their lives. Recently, Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) assessment has been found to be an area of growing awareness by physicians and their patients.
..The Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections was from Feb. 24-28. Among the reports:
.....A trial comparing therapy with standard interferon versus pegylated interferon was conducted among patients coinfected with HIV. All participants also received ribavirin. At 24 weeks, these results were reported:

overall undetectable HCV
genotype 1
genotypes 2 or 3
histologic improvement
standard
15%
7%
40%
40%
pegylated
44%
33%
80%
26%

......HCV RNA was found in cervical and vaginal fluids from 5 of 9 HCV/HIC co-infected women. It is possible that this may play a role in sexual and mother-to-child transmission.
......HCV RNA was found in the brain tissue of 3 of 6 HCV infected cadavers (one was also coinfected with HIV). The researchers suggested that HCV might replicate in the central nervous system and might be carried across the blood-brain barrier in lymphoid cells. This may help explain why HCV infection is associated with cognitive impariment, depression and anxiety more often than those symptoms are experienced with other types of liver disease.
If you have no money or insurance call:
Sacramento Clinical Trials
Schering's Commitment to Care 1-800-521-7157
Infergen's Safety Net Program 1-888-508-8088
Roche's Patient Assistance 1-800-443-6676
Dr. Gish, et al, call: Pacific Hepatology, (916) 443-0503
Dr. Pimstone UCD Med Center, (916) 734-1557
Dr. Rossaro UCD Med Cntr, call: Katherine Suggett (916) 734-8696



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