HIV and HCV (Brain) Concurrently - the LTS' Story

[andrew]

the moderator, i hope he doesn't mind me speaking on his behalf, has been hit by this very rare combination.

He has Hep-C (HCV) of the brain and this is more debilitating than HIV.

the last time he was admitted to ICU after his second HCV treatment / injection ... what to do ?

he is being monitored closely by a great hospital and is currently undergoing a battery of tests.

(more to come ...)

[Chip]

get this folks, he has been LIVING with AIDS near on 25 years.

his Viral Load is zero but man, he's a strong bastard. Gay and no coward. Supercool.

[andrew]

his doctors have to kill the Hep but how ?

we are waiting on the magic pill that stops the HepC in the most gentle way possible.

no luck as yet but there are options.

[Matt]

Hope he is doing well.

[andrew]

he is on new meds to help or even halt his dementia.

[Chip]

the HepC jumped the blood brain barrier.

HIV can let that happen - imagine the drug interactions ... his BBB is now up again.

[robojunkie]

I know this is an old thread, not sure why it came up on new posts, but I'd never heard of HCV having a direct neurological effect by being enabled to cross BBB assisted by the HIV.  I used to have HCV but not the HIV and I took that "magic pill" (Harvoni, I presume, two drugs, ledipasvir/sofosbuvir) and it wiped it out to undetectable in less than a month, even though they had me take it for 12 weeks.  Mad expensive stuff, costs more per pill than a couple fingers of dope!!!  Total cost woulda been around $120,000 for the 12 weeks, but I got it free due to horrible financial status and other things (F2 liver damage, just one less than bad enough for insurance to pay for it).  I had never heard of HCV affecting the brain however.  I am curious to know what happened to this person, did he get the Harvoni, did it work to cure the HCV and the brain infection by it (I don't know of hand if either/or ledipasvir or sofosbuvir or both or neither cross the BBB), and before it did or if it didn't what does it do there?  My understanding was that it required very specific cellular proteins and specific enzymes present only in the liver to actually conduct its replication process.  What would it do it the brain, if it can't reproduce there but also (if drug didn't work) can't be killed there? 

Anyways, Chipper, I hope your friend is OK, that's obviously the important part, I am however really interested in this as I used to have it, and have known a few HIV+ people over the years, almost all of whom also had HCV and I had never heard of this.  I've heard of AIDS-related dementia and the virus' secondary effects on neurological processes but never HCV.

[Chip]

the HepC jumped the BBB when in Intensive Care.

he has AIDS but his health is much better.

bizarre but true ... he hasn't tried Harvoni but I think it's something his doctors are considering.

[Chip]

Update:

Harvoni cured his brain HCV (as suspected)