Hepatitis C
Can Chronic Hepatitis C Patients with Genotypes 2 or 3 Benefit from Shorter Interferon Treatment?
- Details
- Category: HCV Treatment
- Published on Tuesday, 26 October 2010 13:02
A shorter 12 to 16 week course of pegylated interferon plus ribavirin is not as effective overall for people with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes 2 or 3, according to a meta-analysis and 2 recent international trials. However, abbreviated treatment may be a viable option for selected patients with rapid virological response at 4 weeks, low HCV viral load, and inability to tolerate longer therapy.
HIV Coinfection Does Not Worsen Liver Transplant Outcomes in People with Hepatitis B or C
- Details
- Category: Decompensation & ESLD
- Published on Friday, 08 October 2010 12:46
HIV positive liver transplant recipients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection did not fare worse overall than HIV negative people, according to a Spanish study presented at the 50th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC 2010) last month in Boston. Coinfected patients were less likely to experience organ rejection, but HCV recurrence was a leading cause of adverse outcomes.
Addition of HCV Protease Inhibitor Telaprevir Can Shorten Interferon-based Treatment
- Details
- Category: Experimental HCV Drugs
- Published on Friday, 13 August 2010 14:02
Adding the investigational hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor telaprevir (formerly known as VX-950) to standard hepatitis C therapy using pegylated interferon plus ribavirin can potentially shorten treatment from 48 to 24 weeks for people with hard-to-treat HCV genotype 1, Vertex Pharmaceuticals announced this week. In the Phase 3 ILLUMINATE trial, previously untreated patients who showed good virological response at weeks 4 and 12 of therapy did just as well with a 6-month course of treatment as with the standard 12-month duration, reaching a sustained virological response rate of 92%. Vertex plans to file for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of telaprevir during the fourth quarter of this year.
Does CD4 Cell Count Influence Liver Fibrosis in HIV/HCV Coinfected People?
- Details
- Category: HCV Disease Progression
- Published on Friday, 01 October 2010 12:46
Neither current nor lowest-ever CD4 T-cell levels were associated with hepatitis C virus (HCV) viral load or severity of liver fibrosis in HIV positive people after adjusting for other factors, according to a Spanish study presented at the recent 50th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC 2010) in Boston.
Reappearance of HCV in Gay Men Is Usually Due to Re-infection, Not Late Relapse
- Details
- Category: HCV Sexual Transmission
- Published on Tuesday, 06 July 2010 00:28
Re-emergence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in gay and bisexual men who were previously treated and achieved sustained virological response with interferon-based therapy appears to be due to reinfection, not late relapse occurring after the usual window for determining a cure, according to a genetic sequencing study described in the April 1, 2010 Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.
FDA Suspends Trials of Experimental HCV Regimen IDX184 plus IDX320 Due to Liver Toxicity Concerns
- Details
- Category: Experimental HCV Drugs
- Published on Friday, 10 September 2010 00:00
Idenix Pharmaceuticals announced this week that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has placed a hold on clinical trials evaluating the experimental hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor IDX320 and the nucleotide analog prodrug IDX184. This decision came after Idenix reported that 3 healthy HCV negative volunteers who took IDX 184 plus IDX320 in combination experienced serious liver enzyme elevation. The company indicated that it considers the 2 drugs to be safe based on early trials looking at hepatitis C patients, and it intends to submit data from completed preclinical and early clinical studies to the FDA for further analysis.
Treating Hepatitis C in People with Compensated Cirrhosis Is Most Cost-effective Approach
- Details
- Category: HCV Treatment
- Published on Friday, 02 July 2010 13:54
Interferon-based combination therapy for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is most cost-effective -- saving more than $55,000 compared with no treatment -- when initiated in patients with compensated cirrhosis rather than waiting until progression to decompensated cirrhosis or HCV recurrence after a liver transplant, according to research from the University of California at Los Angeles reported in the June 2010 issue of Liver Transplantation.
Acute Hepatitis C as a Sexually Transmitted Infection in HIV Positive Men
- Details
- Category: HCV Sexual Transmission
- Published on Friday, 20 August 2010 00:00
Sexual transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) among HIV positive men who have sex with men has now been recognized for a decade, occurring in cities in Europe, North America, and Australia. Since acute HCV outbreaks occur almost exclusively among men with HIV, being HIV positive probably plays a critical role, according to the authors of a review article in the July 31, 2010 issue of AIDS.
House of Representatives Holds Hearing on the 'Secret Epidemic' of Viral Hepatitis
- Details
- Category: HCV Treatment
- Published on Friday, 25 June 2010 13:41
One June 17 the U.S. House of Representative Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a hearing on viral hepatitis, a largely "silent epidemic" that has begun to receive more attention in the wake of the Institute of Medicine's report on liver cancer and hepatitis B and C. Assistant Secretary for Health Howard Koh and John Ward, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Viral Hepatitis Program, participated in the meeting. The committee urged Congress to pass legislation introduced by Rep. Mike Honda and a bipartisan coalition of co-sponsors (H.R. 3974) that will increase funding for hepatitis B and C education, testing, and treatment.
More Articles...
- Blood-boosting Adjuvant Therapies Can Improve Response to Interferon-based Treatment for Hepatitis C
- CDC Reports Increasing Incidence of Liver Cancer, Mostly Due to Chronic Hepatitis B and C
- Hepatitis C Remains Uncommon Among HIV Negative Gay Men
- 75% of Treatment-naive Genotype 1 Hepatitis C Patients Achieve Sustained Response with Telaprevir Combination, Most with 24 Weeks of Therapy
- Screening for Liver Cancer in HIV/HCV Coinfected People
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