XMRV Testing: What is the Goal?

[slayadragon]

I just found out today that in order to get the XMRV test, people have to discontinue antibiotics and antivirals for 21 days!

That rules out getting the test for me for the moment. I'm already deathly afraid that the Valcyte is going to stop working for me, and that seems just like an invitation to making that happen.

At some point, if a treatment for XMRV that I want to try becomes available, I'll be more inclined to take the risk.

Thanks to everyone for your input.

Best, Lisa

 

[Daffodil]

lisa..you do not have to stop antivirals for the XMRV/MLV serology test. dr. lombardi told me they should not affect the results.

"If we get to the point where 10% of the population is going to do this after getting a positive result for a virus on a blood test, it's going to be a scary world indeed. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't see it happening."

- why dont you see this happening? as far fetched and horrible as this seems now, this might well become the reality. no one would have believed something like HIV would come along and do what its done, either...but it did.

i think there is a reason we arent hearing much about this in the media...because the truth about this is going to be worse than HIV. this will be transmissable, at least during some phase of the infection, through saliva.

 

[slayadragon]

http://www.vipdx.com/order_test_kit/instructions/


Collection Instructions

COLLECT THE REQUIRED NUMBER OF TUBES for each test as listed under Specimen
Example: 3GR = three green top tubes
LABEL ALL SPECIMENS clearly and properly to correspond with patient test requisition
SHIP AT AMBIENT (ROOM) TEMPERATURE
ORDERING PHYSICIAN MUST SIGN the REQUISITION
FASTING is NOT necessary
With physician approval, finish all anti-viral or anti-bacterial medications and wait 21 days before testing
Ship samples as soon as possible after collection
Samples must be received within 24 hours after draw
DO NOT SHIP ON FRIDAY OR THE DAY BEFORE A HOLIDAY
Use the provided IATA approved shipping containers and FedEx clinical envelope

*

Daffodil, I may be remembering wrong, but I seem to recall your a) previously being on Valcyte and b) not being XMRV+ (according to the test).

If so, were you taking Valcyte when you did the test? Do you think that you might have gotten a false negative?

I don't have everyone's case histories memorized line by line, but it's always seemed to me really weird that you wouldn't be XMRV positive. Your case seems really classic ME/CFS to me.

The "false negative" possibility here seems to have the potential to be really misleading, I think.

If I had to lay a wager, it would be that in the end (when a better test is developed) the Canadian Criteria are going to turn out to be MUCH more predictive of whether people actually are XMRV+ than the current XMRV test.

Best, Lisa