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Colorado
Hepatitis C Support Groups
For individuals infected with hepatitis C and family members affected by hepatitis C. Free and confidential. New members always welcome.
Metro-Denver
Aurora - 900 Potomac, 1st Floor Staff Cafeteria ~ 1st Tues. ~ 6:30-8 p.m. ~ Consuelo (303) 367-2813
Englewood - 1000 Englewood Parkway ~ 4th Tues. ~ 7-8:30 p.m. Deidrea (303) 504-1853
Lakewood - 11500 W. 20th ~ 2nd Tues. ~ 6:30-8 p.m.
Betsy (303) 237-1150
HIV/HCV Co-Infection - 1660 S. Albion ~ 4th Tues. 5:30-7:00 p.m. Kim (303) 862-0407
VA (VA Patients Only) - 1055 Clermont, Room 2E-104 ~ 2nd Wed. 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Deidrea (303) 504-1853
Statewide
Boulder - People's Clinic 2nd floor 3303 N. Broadway 2nd Wed 6:00 - 7:30p.m. Carrie (303) 875-2568
CO Springs - 825 E. Pikes Peak, 5th Floor Dining Room ~ 3rd Thurs. ~ 7-8:30 p.m. ~ David (719) 440-0025
Fort Collins - 2809 E. Harmony, 3rd Floor ~ Last Wed. ~ 6:30-8 p.m. ~ Jerry (970) 214-2912
Grand Junction - 515 28 3/4 Road Bldg A, ~ 1st Wed. ~ 5:15-6:45 p.m. Rainy (970) 208-4507
Pueblo - Last Mon. 5:00 - 6:30 p.m. Rhonda lovetorideinpueblo@yah
o.com
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Greetings!
Welcome to the May 2009 edition of Connections!
Hep C Connection invites you, your loved ones, and our Colorado residents, in recognizing May as Hepatitis C Awareness Month.
May has been declared "Hepatitis C Awareness Month" by the Mayor, Denver City Council and Colorado General Assembly. They have officially recognized the work that Hep C Connection does to develop awareness, provide education, resources and services to those who are "at-risk", infected, or to the many affected by the hepatitis C virus.
May 19th is World Hepatitis Day
In support of Hepatitis Awareness Month, please join us at our Annual Viral Hepatitis Conference Wednesday, May 13th. Don't know what to do with your used hypodermic needles? Learn about our Drop To Stop community collaborative event the week of May 11th through May 15th. Hep C Connection staff and volunteers continue to participate in the many community health fairs offering education, testing, and resource and support services.
We want to hear from you! To comment or contribute interesting news and information about hepatitis, please send us a note at info@hepc-connection.org. The deadline for news postings is May 18th.
Please share our newsletter with others by simply forwarding it to others, or by using the forwarding option at the bottom. Thank you! |
| 2009 Colorado Viral Hepatitis Conference - May 13th |
May is Hepatitis Awareness Month, and to help commemorate the month (and back by popular demand) is Hep C Connection's annual Colorado Viral Hepatitis Conference! This year's conference will be on Wednesday, May 13, 2009, at the Anschutz Medical Campus at the University of Colorado Denver.
The one-day conference will feature large-group meetings in the morning and early afternoon and three tracks in the afternoon focusing on specific categories: policy, corrections, and case management. Confirmed topics and speakers include: an overview of viral hepatitis and co-infection from Dr. Steve Johnson; disability and employee rights with Barry Glass, LCSW from The Legal Center for People with Disabilities and Older People; hepatitis C testing and prevalence in the Department of Corrections with Dr. Paula Frantz; the next steps to take after hepatitis C diagnosis and interpreting test results with Ed Marino, PA-C.
The cost for the conference is $45, which includes breakfast, lunch, and parking. Please register by Friday, May 8, 2009. For more information, please contact Laura Ginnett at (720) 917-3960 or lginnett@hepc-connection.org. |
| Drop To Stop |
Don't know what to do with your used hypodermic needles? Safely dispose of them May 11th through May 15th.
Hep C Connection and other local agencies have made disposal of used hypodermic needles safe and convenient by partnering to create the Drop to Stop project. Drop to Stop is a week-long community outreach project that encourages Colorado residents to dispose of their used needles safely, preventing the transmission of blood-borne infections such as hepatitis C and HIV. Individuals can drop off their used needles Monday, May 11th through Friday, May 15th from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the following drop-off locations:
The Drop-In Center, 775 Lipan Street, Denver
Empowerment, 600 York Street, Denver
Northern Colorado AIDS Project, 400 Remington #100, Ft. Collins
Project Safe, 1741 Vine Street, Denver
Tri-County Health Department:
Alton Colfax location, Wells Fargo Bank Bldg., 9000 East Colfax #105, Aurora
Pecos location, Samuel Bldg., 7290 Samuel Drive #130, Denver
Urban Peak Outreach, 2100 Stout Street, Denver
Western Colorado AIDS Project, 805 Main Street, Grand Junction
Nancy Steinfurth, Executive Director for Hep C Connection, said, "Many people use syringes to manage medical conditions and do not know what to do with their needles after they have been used, creating a potential public health concern. The Drop to Stop project is designed to teach and encourage safe disposal of needles for those who use syringes."
To learn more about the Drop to Stop project, contact Stewart Thomas, Medical and Marketing Liaison with Hep C Connection, at (720) 917-3970. |
| Doctors & Science |
Overview of the Current Standard of Care for Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis C
The current standard of care for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is combination therapy with pegylated interferon alfa-2a (Pegasys) or pegylated interferon alfa-2b (PegIntron), both in combination with ribavirin. At the 13th International Symposium on Viral Hepatitis and Liver Disease (ISVHLD) last week in Washington, DC, experts in the field of viral hepatitis were invited to present their views on various issues. Dr. Peter Ferenci of the Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, offered an overview of the use of the 2 pegylated interferons plus ribavirin for chronic hepatitis C. Following is an edited summary of his remarks. To read the full article, please click here. To read other related newsworthy pieces please visit www.hivandhepatitis.com. |
| Living With Hepatitis C, A Survivors Guide - On Sale Now |
LIVING WITH HEPATITIS C, A SURVIVORS GUIDE, Fourth Edition, written by Gregory T. Everson, M.D., F.A.C.P., Director of Hepatology at the University of Colorado Health Science Center, and Hedy Weinberg on sale now for $10.
(Includes postage & handling)
To order your copy, please e-mail Amy Burkholder, Administrative Assistant, at aburkholder@hepc-connection.org.
LIVING WITH HEPATITIS C, A SURVIVORS GUIDE is the first book written for the millions of Americans who suffer from this deadly disease offering guidance and answers for those infected or affected. Read about the nature of the disease and how it affects your body, pegylated and consensus interferons, the emerging standard-of-care, understanding confusing blood test, coping with emotions and grief, medical costs, and much more!
Living With Hepatitis C: The Complete Health Guide to the Causes and Treatment of Hepatitis C, Fifth Edition, written by Gregory T. Everson, M.D., F.A.C.P. and Hedy Weinberg will be available July 2009. |
| Find A Cure Panel - REPEAT |
Hep C Connection is excited to announce an affiliation with Find A Cure Panel where people with hep C can participate in quantitative online research designed specifically for them. For every survey completed by those who register, Find A Cure Panel will donate a minimum of $25 to Hep C Connection.
You can complete the two minute profile, by clicking the logo below:
Please note that the registration profile is only used to send the specific surveys to you. FACP doesn't ask for your street address and has no offline contact with you. If you don't want to give your full name then you can use initials. For example, if you are Robert John Smith, you can sign up as "RJ Smith".
The data provided in actual surveys is completely anonymous. All the clients will see is a 16 digit number like this: 40010-1234567890. They will not know who that respondent is. This is a great way for you to impact the development of future treatment for hep C while supporting Hep C Connection. Check it out! |
| A Personal Story |
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"I found out I had Hepatitis C in 1992, by letter from the American Red Cross after a routine blood donation. It has been determined that I probably acquired the virus in 1970 when I was 19 years old and underwent major back surgery, during which I received 5 pints of donated blood.
What was it like for you when you found out? I was scared to death; I didn't know what Hepatitis C meant, so I took the letter to my family doctor who indicated we would track the virus via yearly blood tests to check liver enzymes. My only symptom for years (even after my first round of treatment) has been extreme tiredness.
Describe the process you went through in getting medical care, whether to seek treatment, and the results. I originally was started on the current two-drug protocol in 2000, but due to the severity of the side effects, quit after 8 weeks. I was a walking zombie - no sleep, very, very irritable, couldn't think, etc. I changed family doctors, and in 2006, my new doctor strongly recommended undergoing treatment again, to which I agreed. The year 2007 was spent on Interferon and Ribavirin, and a host of side effects plagued me from hair loss to loss of appetite/nausea, disturbed sleep, moodiness, etc. On the positive side, about 6 months into treatment, the virus was "undetectable."
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| A Special Thank You |
Hep C Connection is fortunate to have support from many people and corporations. We would like to say THANK YOU to the following for their contributions between January 1 and April 30, 2009:
Abernathy, Deanna Neese, Robert & Penny
Barton, Pamela Overgaard, Jerry & Carolyn
Baxter, Norma Pikes Peak United Way
Benson, Carl Roche
Boles, James Rounds, Stephen & Nicolette
Bullard, Clint Ruderman, Tillie & Maxine Levy
Cissna, Scott Schering Plough
Colorado Health Foundation Seymour, Sue
Corbin, DL Shillam, Pam
Delaney, Judith & John Sisson, Sarah
Dotter, William State of Colorado
Douglas, Mr & Mrs John Steinfurth, Nancy
Duncan Trust, John G Stewart, Ronald
Elkins-Gunovick, Peggy Taveira, Steven & Joanne
Feinland, Robert Thomas, Gail
Fuss, Aryeh & Edis Tridex Systems
Gass, Jerome & Debra United Way
Gavan, Patricia Vertex
Glenn, Rusty Warner, Amy
Goldberg, Julie Warren, Charles
Gonzalez, Stacie Warren-Vansickle, Anne
Goodman, Lori Yannekis, Liona
Grube, Mike Young, Matthew
Hays, Keith Young, Thomas & Marsha
Hodgman, Robert & Susan
Hunt, Wayne
Johnson, Mary E
Kathy's Tax Service
Kellog, Jean
Klein, Roxanna
Kohn, Joan
Kuran, William & Deborah Livornese
Lorenzini, David
Mauro, Joseph
McAndrew, Linda
Medtronic Foundation
Meyer, Christopher | |
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