Medicaid patients denied new hepatitis C cures

Medicaid patients denied new hepatitis C cures

By Wes Venteicher, Chicago Tribune

"There's a difference between prescribing (hepatitis C) drugs and actually being able to get these drugs for our patients," said Dr. Andrew Aronsohn, a liver specialist at the University of Chicago Medical Center. "It's becoming a very complicated issue."

The cash-strapped state faces a growing dilemma over how to balance public health and the spending of taxpayer dollars, as new specialty drugs emerge for hepatitis C and other sicknesses and more people areeligible for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.

In addition to limiting Sovaldi to the sickest patients, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services has set two dozen criteria for who can get the drug, including requiring that patients have no evidence of drug or alcohol abuse in the last 12 months and barring treatments not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.....

Continue reading....

Related:
Reducing the cost of new hepatitis C drugs
Daclatasvir, Harvoni (ledipasvir/sofosbuvir) and Sovaldi.
An index of articles & research weighing the pros and cons over the high price of hepatitis C drugs.
The situation has Medicaid plans and insurers nationwide groping for the right balance. Worldwide patients are unable to afford treatment, while others wait in the wings on coverage. 

Weekend Reading - AASLD 2014: Overview with expert commentary on key studies presented at the meeting

AASLD 2014: Overview with expert commentary on key studies presented at the meeting

*Updated Nov 16 to include HCV Advocate's Mid-Month Publication 

Good day folks, welcome to another edition of Weekend Reading.

Is everyone thinking about celebrating Thanksgiving? If only I had time to ready my new abode for the upcoming holiday, but Nana has been diverted by a clever 30 pound Zombie hunting mutant ninja turtle!

Every morning while I attempt to plan the families menu,  I hear a gentle tap, tap at my door, waiting on the other side is my three year old grandson ready for the hunt. Off we go racing through Nana's complex in search of Zombies. To date we saved three ladybugs, two spiders and one plastic cat without a tail. Although we did find a ladder leading up to the roof, wow, imagine our excitement as we climbed to the top only to realize the hatch was firmly locked, my complex is secure!

Anyhow, if you too are searching for Zombies on this fine Saturday, please do carry on. However, if you came by for a bit of weekend reading, we begin with HCV Advocates Mid-Month Newsletter:

HCV Advocate's Mid-Month Edition



In This Issue:
Genotype 3
Alan Franciscus, Editor-in-Chief
In the past, HCV genotype 3 was thought to be one of the easiest to cure. As a result there was little incentive to develop newer therapies especially since there were fewer people with genotype 3 in developed countries. Now we know that of all HCV genotypes 1 through 4, genotype 3 is the hardest to treat and cure with HCV inhibitor therapy.

Read more...


Hepatitis C in Canada
—Cheryl Reitz, MA & CD Mazoff, PhD
Canada has a large population with hepatitis C, but there is no national strategy in place for testing or treatment. While the new HCV inhibitors are slowly being approved, access to them and whether they will be covered under "Pharmacare" plans differs widely from province to province. 

Read more...


Alan Franciscus, Editor-in-Chief
Read about whether there is a relationship between HCV and diabetes, the use of Sovaldi for post-transplant infection, shorter treatment times and the continuum of HCV testing and care. 

Read more...


Preparing Your Medical Record for Disability
Jacques Chambers, CLU
Transitioning from work to disability is a major life event with all the confusion, frustration, and emotional upheaval such events can bring. Now is the time to start getting your medical record into a shape that will support disability, if and when it is needed. 

Read more...




What's New
Alan Franciscus, Editor-in-Chief
Hepatitis C Vaccine Shows Promise
FDA Approves Olysio/Sovaldi Combo
Read more...

New & Updated Spanish Easy C Facts
Alan Franciscus, Editor-in-Chief
Ayuda con Medicamentos (Help with Medicines)
Tratamiento para Genotipo 1: Harvoni (Sofosbuvir & Ledipasvir).
Read more...

Over at ViralEd check out a review of this months liver meeting. The Live eSymposium took place on November 11, the replay is available here, or click here to view the EU edition featuring Europe-based clinicians reporting on the meeting.

Don't forget to watch for an On-Demand Program reviewing the meeting - coming soon at  ViralEd.

Independent reporting from AASLD 

Hepatitis C: Management and Treatment

Commentary by 

Mark Sulkowski, MD

Nezam H. Afdhal, MD

K. Rajender Reddy, MD

Fred Poordad, MD

Program Overview
While an increasing number of options are available or in development for effectively treating patients with HCV infection, many clinicians find it challenging to keep abreast of important developments in HCV therapeutics. This 1.5-hour Internet symposium will feature independent reporting on, review and discussion of the key studies on chronic hepatitis C presented at the 65th American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases Annual Meeting (AASLD 2014).

The expected result is that participants will not only gain an increased understanding of key data presented at AASLD 2014, they will also be better prepared to address their HCV patients' health needs and provide optimal care, which should improve adherence, increase individualized care, reduce adverse effects and drug-drug interactions, and improve quality of life.

Begin Here.......

For additional coverage check out Clinical Care Options CCO for an in-depth program overview with capsule summaries and expert commentary covering key studies presented at the meeting, updated November 14.

CORAL-1: High SVR Rates With 24 Weeks of All-Oral Paritaprevir/Ritonavir/Ombitasvir + Dasabuvir and Ribavirin in Patients With Recurrent Genotype 1 HCV After Liver Transplantation
97% of patients in this historically challenging patient population achieved SVR12, with no episodes of acute or chronic liver graft rejection.
Date Posted: 11/14/2014

High SVR12 Rates in Pooled Analysis of Phase III Trials of Paritaprevir/RTV/Ombitasvir + Dasabuvir ± Ribavirin in Cirrhotic and Noncirrhotic Patients With Genotype 1a HCV Infection
The addition of ribavirin resulted in higher SVR rates, and extension of therapy to 24 weeks beneficial for cirrhotic patients with a previous null response to peginterferon/ribavirin.

TURQUOISE-II Subanalysis: Most Baseline Characteristics Not Associated With SVR12 to Paritaprevir/RTV/Ombitasvir Plus Dasabuvir and Ribavirin in Patients With Genotype 1 HCV Infection and Cirrhosis
In logistic regression analysis, IL28B TT genotype, previous null response to peginterferon/ribavirin, and genotype 1a HCV only factors significantly associated with not achieving SVR12.

Retreatment With Ledipasvir/Sofosbuvir + RBV Highly Efficacious, Safe in Patients With Genotype 1 HCV Infection Who Failed Previous Sofosbuvir-Based Therapy
Among the 50 patients with genotype 1 HCV infection in this study, 100% achieved SVR12 after 12 weeks of retreatment; single relapse was misclassified patient later found to have genotype 3a HCV infection.

UNITY-1: High SVR12 Rates Following 12 Weeks of Daclatasvir/Asunaprevir/Beclabuvir in Treatment-Naive and Previously Treated Noncirrhotic Patients With Genotype 1 HCV
SVR12 rate of approximately 90% for both treatment-naive and treatment-experienced patients.

Ledipasvir/Sofosbuvir + Ribavirin Safe and Effective for Treatment of HCV in Patients With Decompensated Cirrhosis
High SVR12 rates and improved liver function with low rates of treatment-emergent adverse events.

C-SWIFT: Initial Results Show All-Oral Regimen of Grazoprevir/Elbasvir + Sofosbuvir for 6-8 Weeks Effective and Safe in Treatment-Naive Noncirrhotic and Cirrhotic Patients With Genotype 1 HCV Infection
SVR4/8 rates higher in patients with genotype 1b HCV infection, IL28B CC genotype, or lower baseline HCV RNA level.

8-Week Regimen of Sofosbuvir + GS-5816 With or Without Ribavirin Effective but Resulted in SVR Rates Lower Than Previously Seen With 12 Weeks in Treatment-Naive Noncirrhotic Patients With Genotype 1 or 2 HCV Infection
In this phase II trial, sofosbuvir plus GS-5816 with or without ribavirin was generally safe and well tolerated with only 1 patient discontinuing treatment because of adverse events.

Final C-WORTHY Results: Grazoprevir + Elbasvir ± RBV Yields High SVR12 Rates in Genotype 1 Treatment-Naive Cirrhotic Patients and Previous Null Responders
SVR12 rates ≥ 90% were attained regardless of RBV use or treatment duration.

ALLY-3: High SVR12 Rates With 12 Weeks of Daclatasvir + Sofosbuvir in Treatment-Naive or Treatment-Experienced Patients With Genotype 3 HCV Infection
SVR12 rates substantially lower for both treatment-naive and treatment-experienced cirrhotics vs noncirrhotics.

ELECTRON-2: High SVR12 Rates With Sofosbuvir + NS5A Inhibitor GS-5816 With or Without Ribavirin in Treatment-Naive, Noncirrhotic Genotype 3 HCV–Infected Patients in Phase II Trial
Low levels of discontinuation due to adverse events; no virologic failure with 100-mg dose of GS-5816. Inclusion of ribavirin associated with more frequent adverse events with no efficacy benefit.

HCV-TARGET: Real-World Use of Sofosbuvir-Containing Regimens Yields Overall SVR4 Rates ≥ 85% in Patients With Genotype 1 or 2 HCV Infection
To date, regimens allowing removal of peginterferon most commonly selected: sofosbuvir plus ribavirin in patients with genotype 2/3 infection and sofosbuvir plus simeprevir with or without ribavirin in genotype 1 HCV infection.

Ledipasvir/Sofosbuvir Regimens Highly Effective, Safe, and Well Tolerated in Patients With Genotype 1 HCV and Compensated Cirrhosis
Similar SVR12 rates with 24-week ribavirin-free regimen vs 12-week ribavirin-containing regimen in treatment-experienced cirrhotics.

HCV Management (Coming soon)

HCV Management (Coming soon)

HCV Management (Coming soon)

Traditionally Hard-to-Treat HCV (Coming soon)

Traditionally Hard-to-Treat HCV (Coming soon)

Traditionally Hard-to-Treat HCV (Coming soon)

All-Oral Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy With Daclatasvir/Asunaprevir/BMS-791325 ± Ribavirin for Patients With Chronic HCV Genotype 1 Infection and Compensated Cirrhosis: UNITY-2 Phase III SVR12 Results (Coming soon)

Source: Official Conference Coverage
2014 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases

Coverage on hepatitis B is available at Hepatitis B Foundation, reported by Christine Kukka.

AASLD 2014 Liver Meeting – HBV Coverage

AASLD Links

Comprehensive data investigating HCV interferon-free, ribavirin-free regimens presented at the liver meeting is now available on this blogs website.

Updated daily, categorized by genotype and pharmaceutical company, with links to breaking news, clinical data, commentary and slide-sets from premier Hepatitis C websites.

Hepatitis C New Drug Research: Conference Reports

NATAP
Healio
HIV and Hepatitis

Medscape
MedPage Today

Of Interest

Media-Investment Commentary 

FierceBiotech 

Seeking Alpha 

The Post AASLD Annual Meeting Hepatitis C Landscape

See you all soon, enjoy the weekend.

Tina

It’s Here: CCO’s Official Conference Coverage of AASLD 2014‏

Official Conference Coverage of the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases

Capsule Summaries
Reviews by expert faculty on key studies highlighted at the conference
Downloadable slides
Review Conference Coverage

Ledipasvir/Sofosbuvir Regimens Highly Effective, Safe, and Well Tolerated in Patients With Genotype 1 HCV and Compensated Cirrhosis
Similar SVR12 rates with 24-week ribavirin-free regimen vs 12-week ribavirin-containing regimen in treatment-experienced cirrhotics.
Review the Full Capsule

HCV-TARGET: Real-World Use of Sofosbuvir-Containing Regimens Yields Overall SVR4 Rates ≥ 85% in Patients With Genotype 1 or 2 HCV Infection
To date, regimens allowing removal of peginterferon most commonly selected: sofosbuvir plus ribavirin in patients with genotype 2/3 infection and sofosbuvir plus simeprevir with or without ribavirin in genotype 1 HCV infection.
Review the Full Capsule

ELECTRON-2: High SVR12 Rates With Sofosbuvir + NS5A Inhibitor GS-5816 With or Without Ribavirin in Treatment-Naive, Noncirrhotic Genotype 3 HCV-Infected Patients in Phase II Trial
Low levels of discontinuation due to adverse events; no virologic failure with 100-mg dose of GS-5816. Inclusion of ribavirin associated with more frequent adverse events with no efficacy benefit.
Review the Full Capsule

ALLY-3: High SVR12 Rates With 12 Weeks of Daclatasvir + Sofosbuvir in Treatment-Naive or Treatment-Experienced Patients With Genotype 3 HCV Infection
SVR12 rates substantially lower for both treatment-naive and treatment-experienced cirrhotics vs noncirrhotics.
Review the Full Capsule

Final C-WORTHY Results: Grazoprevir + Elbasvir ± RBV Yields High SVR12 Rates in Genotype 1 Treatment-Naive Cirrhotic Patients and Previous Null Responders
SVR12 rates ≥ 90% were attained regardless of RBV use or treatment duration.
Review the Full Capsule

VIDEO: Hepatitis C screening rises, but where are the positive cases?

VIDEO: Hepatitis C screening rises, but where are the positive cases?

By: PATRICE WENDLING, Family Practice News Digital Network 

NOVEMBER 14, 2014

BOSTON– The number of hepatitis C virus antibody tests increased by 15.4% after the 2012 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention task force recommendation calling for one-time HCV testing in baby boomers, according to preliminary results from an analysis of 4.5 million tests.

Surprisingly, that increase in testing did not lead to an increase in the number of positive tests, which actually declined by 4.1%, R. Monina Klevens, D.D.S., MPH, reported at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

“This is a huge question that we need to look at for implementation,” said Dr. Klevens, a medical epidemiologist with the CDC.

Video

For a deep dive into the data and to hear what’s next, click here to see an interview with Dr Klevens.

Dr. Klevens reported no financial disclosures.

The American Journal of Medicine Launches Hepatitis C Resource Center

The American Journal of Medicine Launches Hepatitis C Resource Center

The American Journal of Medicine (AJM) announces the availability of an original, comprehensive, online Hepatitis C Resource Center dedicated to providing primary care providers and specialists with the latest information on the screening, diagnosis, treatment and management of Hepatitis C (HCV). Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, publishes AJM.

In a survey of primary care physicians (PCPs) who had screened and/or cared for HCV patients within the last six months, 60 percent confirmed they were not very confident or only somewhat confident when screening patients for chronic HCV infection. AJM and Elsevier Multimedia Publishing commissioned the survey, which was conducted by Metrics for Learning, LLC.

"The mandate for population-based screening and the lack of confidence of PCPs to screen highlights an opportunity that can be addressed in our healthcare system by appropriate education," said Edward Lebovics, MD, FACP, AGAF, FACG, FAASLD, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatobiliary Diseases at New York Medical College. Dr. Lebovics is guest editor of the Resource Center.

The survey found that PCPs have misconceptions about who to screen, the risk of progression of liver disease and available therapies. Dr. Lebovics emphasized the shortage of educational resources to provide healthcare practitioners with the latest information on the screening, diagnosis, treatment and management of HCV.

AJM was encouraged to establish the Resource Center based on the current initiatives focusing on HCV screening and diagnosis, along with the advent of oral interferon (IFN)-free treatment regimens that will be published in AJM's November issue.

About 4.1 million persons in the U.S. are infected with HCV. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force published screening recommendations for those born between 1945 and 1965, with several states including New York, Colorado, Connecticut and Massachusetts passing legislation regarding implementation of these recommendations.

The AJM Resource Center site has two major channels:

• One channel has been tailored to address the needs of internal medicine physicians and other PCPs.
• The second channel addresses needs of specialists including hepatologists, gastroenterologists and infectious disease specialists.

In addition, the Resource Center features a video message from Dr. Bryce Smith, a research health scientist at the CDC in Atlanta, Ga. Dr. Smith currently leads the Prevention Research and Evaluation Team in the CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis and also serves as CDC liaison to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force for HCV-related recommendations.

"There is a progressive increase in HCV-associated morbidity and mortality in the U.S. that needs to be addressed now. It is anticipated that PCPs and community practices will become increasingly responsible for the screening, diagnosis, treatment, and management of infected patients, as well as for providing access to care by specialists when needed," said Joseph Alpert, MD, AJM's Editor-in-Chief. "The educational programs, articles, and guidelines contained in this Resource Center are readily available to provide increasingly invaluable HCV disease-state and clinical knowledge to all healthcare providers in hospital- and community-based settings."
For more information and access to the AJM Resource Center, please visit http://hepcresource.amjmed.com.

The study, "Screening, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Management of Hepatitis C: A Novel, Comprehensive, Online Resource Center for Primary Care Providers and Specialists," by Dr. Lebovics and Klara Czobor, can be found at http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(14)00888-2/fulltext.

About The American Journal of Medicine
The "Green Journal" publishes original clinical research of interest to physicians in internal medicine, both in academia and community-based practice. The American Journal of Medicine is the official journal of the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine, a prestigious group comprised of chairs of departments of internal medicine at more than 125 medical schools across the country. Each issue carries useful reviews as well as seminal articles of immediate interest to the practicing physician, including peer-reviewed, original scientific studies that have direct clinical significance, and position papers on health care issues, medical education, and public policy. The journal's ISI factor - the international measure of cited manuscripts and scientific impact - is fourteenth in the world among all general medical journals.  The Editor-in-Chief is Joseph Alpert, MD.

The Post AASLD Annual Meeting Hepatitis C Landscape

Investment Commentary @ Seeking Alpha

The Post AASLD Annual Meeting Hepatitis C Landscape
Leonard Yaffe

Summary

• Advances in efficacy, treatment duration and side effect elimination continue.
• Interferon use will largely disappear, and Ribavirin will be reserved primarily for difficult to treat sub-populations.
• Gilead continues to advance the state of the art, and Merck has a competitive regimen.

Following the AASLD 2014 (American Association for the Study of Liver Disease) Annual Meeting, these are my thoughts regarding Hepatitis C pharmacotherapy:

The goal of pharmacotherapy is a high cure rate and a reduced cost. The extremely high success rates (95% SVR 12) lower costs by decreasing retreatments and complications. Costs are also lessened by shorter treatment time, lower per-unit pricing and the elimination of IFN (interferon) and RBV (ribavirin) from the regimen. In this regard, I expect an increasing move toward 8 week therapy, especially in treatment naïve patients. Furthermore, I believe that IFN use will be virtually eliminated, and RBV use will be dramatically reduced, reserved primarily for hard to treat sub-populations (IFN cost is much more relevant). I cannot comment on per-unit pricing and rebates except that I think AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) will be involved in the latter due to my perception that its regimen is inferior, the extent to which will be determined by the need for RBV.

Continue reading....

How do the liver and brain communicate with each other to regulate appetite?

Researchers at IRB Barcelona discover that the liver and brain communicate in order to regulate appetite

Mice eat less when their hepatic glucose stores are high.

“We have to find treatments to increase hepatic glucose because of its positive effect in diabetes and obesity,” says Joan Guinovart, head of the study published in Diabetes.

The liver stores excess glucose, sugar, in the form of glycogen—chains of glucose—, which is later released to cover body energy requirements. Diabetic patients do not accumulate glucose well in the liver and this is one of the reasons why they suffer from hyperglycemia, that is to say, their blood sugar levels are too high. A study headed by Joan J. Guinovart at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) demonstrates that high hepatic glucose stores in mice prevents weigh gain. The researchers observed that in spite of having free access to an appetizing diet, the animals’ appetite was reduced. This is the first time that a link has been observed between the liver and appetite.

On the basis of the results published in the journal Diabetes, the researchers argue that the stimulation of hepatic glycogen production would provide an efficient treatment to improve diabetes and obesity.

“It is interesting to observe that what happens in the liver has direct effects on appetite. Here we reveal what occurs at the molecular level,” explains Guinovart, head of one of the leading labs worldwide devoted to glycogen metabolism and associated diseases.

Tomorrow, November 14 is World Diabetes Day. The incidence of diabetes and obesity is rising. The World Health Organization estimates that 382 million people worldwide currently live with diabetes and for 2035 it forecasts that one in every 10 people will have this disease. With respect to obesity, which is closely associated with the onset of type 2 diabetes—the most common type of diabetes—the numbers are even higher. In 2008, more than 200 million men and around 300 million women were classified as obese.

“By understanding what doesn’t work properly in diabetes and obesity in the molecular level, we will be closer to proposing new therapeutic targets and to finding solutions,” explains Guinovart, although both diseases can be prevented by eating a balanced diet and exercising daily. “In the case of type 2 diabetes, with diet alone the numbers of people with this condition would half,” states Guinovart.

How do the liver and brain communicate with each other to regulate appetite?

The researchers questioned why mice that accumulated most glycogen in the liver did not gain weight in spite of having access to an appetising diet. In addition to observing that these animals ate less, the scientists found that the brains of these animals showed scarce appetite-stimulating molecules but rather many appetite-suppressing ones.

“Then we finally hit on the clue—with the signal that could explain the liver-brain connection,” explains Iliana López-Soldado, a postdoctoral researcher who has been working on these experiments for three years.

The key to the liver-brain link is ATP, the molecule used by all living organisms to provide cells with energy and which is commonly altered in diabetes and obesity. “We have seen that high levels of hepatic glycogen, stable levels of ATP, and high levels of appetite-suppressing molecules in the mouse brain are perfectly correlated,” explains López-Soldado.

This study has been funded by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and by the CIBER de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas (CIBERDEM), a network to which the lab headed by Joan Guinovart—also senior professor at the University of Barcelona—belongs.

Reference article:

Liver glycogen reduces food intake and attenuates obesity in a high-fat diet fed mouse model

Iliana López-Soldado, Delia Zafra, Jordi Duran, Anna Adrover, Joaquim Calbó, Joan J. Guinovart

Diabetes. 2014 Oct 2. doi:10.2337/db14-0728

IU Researcher Publishes Landmark Results for Curing Hepatitis C in Transplant Patients

IU Researcher Publishes Landmark Results for Curing Hepatitis C in Transplant Patients

A new treatment regimen for hepatitis C, the most common cause of liver cancer and transplantation, has produced results that will transform treatment protocols for transplant patients, according to research published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The investigational three-drug regimen, which produced hepatitis C cure rates of 97 percent, is an oral interferon-free therapy. Previously, the typical treatment for hepatitis C after a liver transplant was an interferon-based therapy, usually given for 48 weeks. It had a much lower response rate, had a risk of organ rejection and was poorly tolerated because of the immunosuppressants required to prevent rejection. The new oral regimen -- ABT-450, ombitasvir and dasabuvir (with or without ribavirin) -- produces significantly fewer side effects and is prescribed for 24 weeks.

First author Paul Kwo, MD, professor of medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine, called the results of the international clinical study a "landmark achievement."

Kwo, who is medical director of liver transplantation at the IU School of Medicine and IU Health, said that cirrhosis caused by hepatitis C is the leading reason for liver transplantation in the U.S., and those patients have lower survival rates than patients transplanted for other causes of cirrhosis.

Patients with hepatitis C who receive a liver transplant have a 20 to 30 percent chance of developing recurrent cirrhosis within five years after transplant. Hepatitis C, which is usually asymptomatic until severe liver damage occurs, is transmitted by exposure to contaminated blood. The most common way to get hepatitis C is through intravenous drug use, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating that 3.2 million individuals in the United States have contracted the hepatitis C virus.

In 2013, 6,400 liver transplants were performed in the U.S., according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, and nearly 50 percent of those patients had hepatitis C with or without liver cancer.

The phase 2, multi-center trial enrolled 34 liver transplant recipients with hepatitis C who did not have cirrhosis. Of those, 33 patients or 97 percent exhibited no sign of hepatitis C virus at 24 weeks after treatment with the new drug regimen, and none suffered transplant rejection. In a similar phase 3 trial of non-transplant patients with cirrhosis, a historically difficult patient group to treat, the same treatment regimen produced a 96 percent cure rate for hepatitis C.

"Recurrent hepatitis C post liver transplantation has historically been difficult to treat, and we have considered post-liver-transplant patients a special population in need of new treatment strategies," Kwo says. "What this study showed is that this special population is no longer special. We can treat them as successfully as if they haven't had a liver transplant with drugs that are well tolerated and without risk of rejection."

This international research study was funded by AbbVie. The results from this study and a phase 3, multi-center randomized study was presented Nov. 11 at the 2014 the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease annual meeting in Boston.

Source: Indiana University