First Post -- What This Is All About

The fastest way to get me out of a room is to start talking about ailments and illness. That's why I launch this blog with some trepidation. It's all about my ailments and illness. Of course that's a much more interesting topic than somebody else's ailments. Bear with me. Read on or not as you choose. You've been warned.

Some ten years ago I donated blood at an office blood drive. A few weeks later I got a letter back from the blood bank. It said (in effect), "Thank you for donating, however we can't use your blood and we can't tell you why. Go see your doctor." Surprised and concerned, I made the necessary appointment. Within a week I learned that I had contracted Hepatitis C. I'm not certain of the source, but I have an idea (a topic for another blog entry).

Since that time I have more or less regularly had a blood test on an annual or semi-annual basis, depending on my doctor's views, and on how well I remembered. A few months ago, after a reminder of mortality (dad's death) I resolved to get my bloodwork back current and to have the usual "manly" exams for the middle years -- prostate, colonoscopy, and so on. That was four weeks ago. A couple of weeks ago I received a note from my doctor. Elevated liver enzymes (I need to look them up, but one was 76, the other 140 where normal is 40) and somewhat low white blood cell count (4.2). No alcohol, no Tylenol.

Another appointment. This was a new doctor to me. I told him that I didn't plan to sit back and watch while this thing killed me or even makes me miserable. Now understanding that this was a new development, I'm in the midst of a round of tests. This morning I had an abdominal ultrasound. In a couple of weeks I see a gastroenterologist. Somewhere along the line I'll probably have a CT scan, possibly with a liver biopsy.

Depending on the outcome of those tests, the most likely next action will be to start a round of Interferon along with some other drugs. Depending on the genotype of the bug, it will probably be either 24 weeks or 48 weeks. Or maybe it's something else.

Right now, I'm not sure what I'm facing. I may or may not be in for the fight of my life.

In the meanwhile, it's like the song says: "The waiting is the hardest part."