Hepatitis C News and Updates: When liver donations go wrong

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Today while I was shopping for news I noticed that my favorite site "HCV Advocate" has a few updates.

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Social Security Consultative Examinations

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When liver donations go wrong * Also View Video
By Elizabeth Cohen, CNN
December 17, 2010 8:12 a.m. EST
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CNN) -- When Ryan Arnold died after donating a piece of his liver to his brother, Chad, his friends and family mourned the loss of a hero who risked his life to save his brother.
The death affected someone else, too -- someone who'd never met the Arnolds. Her name is Laura Fritz, and when she learned about Ryan's death in August in an online television news piece, she was "devastated."
"It hit really close to home," she told CNN. "Because I knew that could have been me."
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WebMD® Hepatitis Community .

What type of doctor should treat your liver disease? .

Melissa Palmer, MD posted: There are many different kinds of doctors who evaluate and treat people with liver disorders. A gastroenterologist is an internist who has completed specialty training in the treatment of digestive disorders. Digestive disorders include disorders of the esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, pancreas, gallbladder, and liver. In order to become board certified in gastroenterology, the doctor must first become board certified in internal medicine. .

In order to become eligible to even take the examination for board certification in gastroenterology, a gastrointestinal (GI) fellowship lasting an additional two to three years beyond an internal medicine residency must be completed. During the course of their two to three years of training in gastroenterology, some gastroenterologists have little exposure to patients with liver disease. On the other hand, some gastroenterologists have a great deal of exposure to patients with liver disease during the course of their gastroenterology specialty training. Thus, the level of experience and expertise among gastroenterologists in diagnosing and treating liver disease varies greatly. It is important for the patient to determine the gastroenterologist's level of expertise in liver disease prior to establishing a long-term medical relationship with this type of doctor. .

A hepatologist is the most experienced and qualified type of doctor to treat people with liver disease. There are specialized training programs for doctors who are focused solely on liver disease, - known hepatology fellowships and typically last from one to two years. Over the course of a hepatology fellowship, a doctor receives comprehensive training in the diagnosis and treatment of liver disease. This specialty training typically includes extensive exposure to all liver diseases, including those that are rare and infrequently seen. This intense training in liver disease is rarely matched in a gastroenterology fellowship. A physician who successfully completes a hepatology fellowship is considered a hepatologist. Most hepatologists, although not all, are also gastroenterologists. These doctors have successfully completed both a hepatology and a gastroenterology fellowship. .

Occasionally, gastroenterologists who have not completed a fellowship in hepatology nonetheless focus their medical practice primarily on the diagnosis and treatment of people with liver disease. For many reasons, it is to the patient's advantage to choose a hepatologist to treat his liver disease. The patient can be virtually assured that the hepatologist will have substantial experience in the diagnosis and treatment of the full range of liver diseases. .

Furthermore, hepatologists are likely to be the first to learn about the most up-to-date therapies—both FDA-approved and experimental—and to incorporate them into their practices. However, whether someone chooses to see a gastroenterologist or a hepatologist, it is important to find a doctor who is willing to work with him or her as an equal partner in the healing process. The full article can be located at

From Medical News Today:

Liver Cancer In Cirrhotic Patients Effectively Treated With Radiofrequency Ablation
17 December 2010Researchers from Italy determined that radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a safe and effective therapy for managing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in cirrhotic patients. The high repeatability of RFA is advantageous in...[read article]


Ocera Therapeutics Completes First In Human Studies With OCR-002 For The Treatment Of Hyperammonemia And Hepatic Encephalopathy
16 December 2010Ocera Therapeutics, Inc. announced that it has completed two studies evaluating the safety and pharmacokinetics of OCR-002 (ornithine phenylacetate) which includes healthy volunteers and patients with liver cirrhosis...[read article]
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Friday, December 17, 2010
Biocompatibles liver cancer treatment submitted for marketing approval in Japan-->
Biocompatilbles’ (LON:BII) partner Eisai Co has applied for approval to market the UK company’s embolic bead E7040 in Japan, which is used to treat liver cancer.
The Japanese Ministry of Health recommended the bead be made available as early as possible at a meeting last January.

Biocompatibles chief executive Crispin Simon said: "We congratulate Eisai on submission of the DC bead Marketing Authorisation.

“The designation of DC Bead for fast track registration in Japan recognises the benefits this product brings over conventional therapies, and the size of the Japanese HCC patient population."

Last month Biocompatibles accepted a bid from drug developer BTG (LON:BGC), which values the company at 430p a share, or £177.2 million in total.
Biocompatibles recommended the offer because it said it believed the deal will create a “fast-growing, financially stronger, international specialist healthcare business”.
The pair said the transaction is about harnessing the growth potential of Biocompatibles, whose drug delivery beads are used in oncology.

They will have cash resources of around £97 million to tap into and a number of other innovations to take into the marketplace.
Investors are being offered 1.6733 BTG shares for each Biocompatibles share they own plus 10p in cash.

Alternatively they can pass on the 10p cash payment and opt instead for contingent value notes up to the value of 47p (56 euros), which are linked to the development of GLP-1 for diabetes and obesity.

Shareholders accounting for 53.19 per cent of Biocompatibles stock have irrevocably committed to backing the deal, while a further 10.49 per cent have said they intend to back the offer.
The acquisition is being done via a scheme of arrangement, which requires 75 per cent support from investors.

Other News

Simple Blood Test Identifies Persons at Highest Risk for Kidney Disease Complications
An infrequently used blood test can effectively identify individuals at increased risk of developing complications associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). Use of this simple test might help physicians identify persons with CKD who are at high risk for complications, and identify persons with impaired kidney function at earlier stages of disease

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