Red Cross ignored early test for Hep C

[dArKeR]

Documents obtained by an American newspaper suggest Red Cross officials in the early 1980s were more concerned with legal requirements than with halting the spread of hepatitis C.

The documents unearthed by The Kansas City Star shed new light on why the Canadian and U.S. Red Cross delayed testing that could have prevented thousands of cases of the disease, then known as non-A, non-B hepatitis.

The ALT test, which detects elevated levels of a liver enzyme, had been found to predict the presence of the new disease with about 30 per cent accuracy. A U.S. expert group had recommended its countrywide use in January 1981.

Yet the testing was not begun until 1986 in the United States and not until 1990 in Canada.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20031111.whepc1111/BNStory/National/

The Reagans

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. My husband has Hep C

and is coping with it using holistic methods. He thought he had it licked and backed off his treatments, which was a mistake. He's back on regular IVs and Chinese herbs. So far his MD doesn't think he needs interferon. My best wishes to all who have this virus.

[xJlM]

2. I'm undergoing treatment right now

I'm about ten months into it, and it's been successful so far. Alpha-interferon and another drug to combat viruses. Happily, I'm not having much in the way of side effects (other than losing all the curl in my hair, and a little weight) and at this time I have no trace of the virus in my system. If I complete the treatment as prescribed, I should be in the 95% who are completely cured. A miracle performed for an athiest!

[tsipple]

3. Dumb Question Possibly

Should I get the A and B vaccines? Under what circumstances are those recommended?

[bleedingheart]

4. Highly recommended for those in the healthcare field or

those who work around loads of children or people (schools, daycare centers, universities)...

Pittsburgh has just seen a big Hep A outbreak...over 300 infected because of eating at Chi Chi's