Access to hepatitis C treatment for patients in drug substitution programmes: the fight is far from over

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Access to hepatitis C treatment for patients in drug substitution programmes: the fight is far from over
Francesco Negro, Liudmyla Maistat
DOI: 10.4414/smw.2017.14570
Swiss Med Wkly. 2017;147:w14570

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a parenterally transmitted human pathogen of global concern. Chronic HCV infection is associated with progressive liver disease culminating in an estimated yearly toll of around 400 000 deaths, mostly due to liver failure and hepatocellular carcinoma. Thus, in 2016, the World Health Organization issued a declaration aiming at the elimination of viral hepatitis as a global public health threat by 2030 [1]. Six indicators were identified to measure the progress in this ambitious effort: infant vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV), prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HBV by birth dose vaccination, blood and injection safety, harm reduction measures for people who inject drugs (PWID), identification of infected patients by means of appropriate screening strategies, and treatment of patients with potent antivirals.

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