Hello Becky,
I was treated for 12 months with the highest dose. It is ironic that the doctor’s who gave me the hep c with their unnecessary/negligent exploratory surgery on me when all I needed was a laxative. That was 1976, and they didn’t find the hep until 1998, by then I was really sick.

I too am on disability for back issues and hep c. And you know what really sucks about this. They told me the drug would maybe take away the hep c, I would get a good job again, and life would be great. They also said side effects were rare!

Here is what happened to me; mucous membranes dried up, ear wax disappeared and was replaced with a dry sandy substance in my ear, it took ten years for my ears to return to normal. My eyes were so dry I had a hard time opening them, went to the eye doctor and was told it was the worse case of dry eye she had ever seen. I must not forget to add that during treatment I developed a floater in my left eye. I now have a cataract and I was told if my head is ever jerked hard my retina will detach!

Rash called tinea amiantacea on my scalp that never goes away.

Overactive bladder where I have to urinate 30 times a day.

The most severe injury was damage to my long legs, it started on treatment, never had pain in my legs before. The pain never goes away. Severe damage to my bones. This happened on interferon, but they love to say it is part of aging!!!!! No, I had a bone density test previous to being put on this drug and had the bones of a 20 year old, so that analogy don’t fly. My knee was especially affected by this drug during treatment. Same knee I need knee replacement on now. Did a lot of research and I am really angry, these drugs were known to fry the bones. The doctor’s were supposed to be giving us bone density tests while on treatment to determine whether that was happening and decrease our dose, never happened!!!!!

I also cannot get my words out in an orderly fashion.

I feel I will be crippled soon with the damage that was done to my bones. I do not want knee replacement. I used to be 5’11”, I am now 5’7”. This drug ruined my life.