There in no cure for HCV, yet HCV untreated can kill you.

Self-medication of Interferon

In the 1980's scientists discovered that interferon was some how able to produce a transient response in HCV infected patients where the amount of HCV virus would descend to nondetectable levels. Patients were treated just with interferon injections seven times a week. Titled "Interferon Monotherapy" this treatment eliminated HCV in 30% patients, yet when treatment stopped 50 percent relapsed and showed signs again. Interferon Monotherapy was therefore roughly only 15 percent effective.

In 1998, Scientists announced a new type of treatment called "Combination Therapy." This was simply the intake of the antiviral medication "Ribavirin" with fewer doses of interferon. Today, Combination Treatment is the typical treatment given to HCV infected patients. Patients must take 1000-1200mg of Ribavirin orally and inject three million units or nine micrograms of interferon 4 times a week. With the addition of Ribaviran to the treatment, HCV is lowered to undetectable levels in 35-45 percent of patients. Unfortunately, the cost for this treatment is roughly 5000 dollars per six months excluding monitoring costs. If this treatment is stopped, HCV relapse will occur.

Patients with acute HCV have a much greater chance of showing a response to either Interferon Monotherapy or Combination Therapy. Treatment on chronic HCV patients may not yield results. This makes the need to diagnose HCV early imperative, yet the long incubation period of HCV makes this a very hard task to complete.

Scientists still have no idea how inteferon affects or suppresses HCV.