Saturday, November 14, 2015

AASLD 2015 - Hepatitis C: an Effective Regimen for Genotype 3

Hepatitis C: an Effective Regimen for Genotype 3
Hepatitis C’s genotype 3 can be hard to cure, but researchers presenting a study at the Liver Meeting (AASLD) in San Francisco, CA, said they have found a regimen that works. Vincent LeRoy, MD, of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Grenoble, La Tronche France, and colleagues at other institutions reported on a trial known as ALLY-3+. 

Fifty patients with HCV-GT-3 were treated and most had already had other treatments. The patients got daclatasvir (Daklinza/Bristol-Myers-Squibb) sofosbuvir (Sovaldi/Gilead) and ribavirin (Rebetol/Merck). One arm of the group got the combo for 12 weeks and showed SVR4 rate of 88%. A second group took the drugs for 16 weeks and their SVR4 rate was 96%. 

There were no virologic breakthroughs. In an abstract presented at the meeting, the team concluded that the combination therapy “Achieved high SVR4 rates” in patients with HCV GT3 with compensated advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis “and was generally safe and well tolerated.” 

HCV in Egypt: Success in Treating Genotype 4
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
Egypt has the highest prevalence of hepatitis C in the word and most of it (90%) is genotype 4. Researchers presenting a study at the Liver Meeting (AASLD) in San Francisco, CA reported success in a trial of ravidasvir

Insurance Lagging on Paying for HCV Antivirals
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
The high costs of direct-acting antivirals to treat hepatitis C infection is no secret—but neither is the fact that the drugs are cost-effective. Pennsylvania researchers found insurers were lagging in approving payment for the drugs in their four-state region, with Medicaid programs the worst offenders.

HCV Antiviral Resistance a Challenge
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
Despite the success of direct antivirals in curing hepatitis C, there are concerns about resistance to the drugs.

Liver Transplant: Ribavirin Not Necessary to Prevent HCV Recurrence
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
Liver transplant specialists looked at whether post-transplant hepatitis C patients could safely eliminate ribavirin (RBV) from their drug regimens. They found they could.

Liver Transplant Lists Grow Shorter
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
Ever since direct acting antivirals for hepatitis C came on the scene, physicians have been watching to see if the need for liver transplants will diminish. It appears they have.

Chinese Study Finds Cheaper, Shorter HCV Drug Regimen
Nov 14, 2015 | AASLD 2015 | Gale Scott
Most patients with non-cirrhotic livers and HCV infection may need only three weeks of direct-acting antivirals, researchers said. They reported on a small proof-of-concept study in China.

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