viral load 0?

[colaa4]

my drs ofc just told me viral load <15 was nOt considered 'undetectable.' if undetectable, it would be 0. is this right? can <15 be measured now? (seems it couldn't in the past. <15 was considered (possible) 'cured.')

[Lynn K]

There is no zero result the lowest the test can quantify (count) is down to 15 IU/mL there could be a lesser number of virus in a blood sample but the test cannot count how many but will be able to detect there is virus present. Less than 15 IU/mL is considered the LLOQ of the test. LLOQ is the lower limit of quantification for the test.

In this case the result would be <15 DETECTED read as less than 15 IU/mL (international units per milliliter if blood) HCV RNA detected meaning there is a very small quantity of hep c virus still detected in the sample but less than 15 IU/mL

My result now shows as <15 NOT DETECTED. But even a not detected result does not equal no virus present. The test result that means cured is NOT DETECTED when tested at 12 weeks after treatment has ended.

When I treated with Sovaldi and Olysio I was “NOT DETECTED” when I finished treatment but when retested at 12 weeks post I was found to have relapsed and my viral load was at pre treatment levels of 2.4 million IU/mL

[Meandpuppies]

I just go the results of my viral load after completing 8 weeks of treatment with Mavyret:Viral load Undetected! Mavyret was just approved for treatment in Oct 2017. Prior to that, there were no treatments available for geno type 1A.  I thought that it was hopeless but I thank God that I was not put on any treatments prior to this because there have been so many side effects reported with the earlier treatments.  With Mavyret the only side effects that I experienced was slight thinning of my hair (which I'm sure it will grow back),possibly some skin bumps on my torso ( could be bug bites for all i know), and anxiety caused by the fact that I was taking medication and worrying about what it was doing to me!  I am very excited to be hep c free! Have been carrying this for over 40 years!
God bless

[Lynn K]

Congrats on your cure puppies

I was infected with hep c for 37 years. I was genotype 1a I was cured with Harvoni and ribavirin for 24 weeks I finished treatment in May 2015. Normally Harvoni would be 12 weeks for genotype 1 but because I was a three time null responder to interferon based treatment and also relapsed after treatment with Sovaldi and Olysio in Sep 2014 plus having liver cirrhosis for over 7 years we went with a much more aggressive treatment.

Harvoni was approved in October 2014 and is an effective treatment for many with genotype 1a