Hepatitis C

Although DAAs achieve sustained virologic response rates above 90%, they are expensive in both Canada and the US. A recent Canadian study examined the limitations hepatitis C patients there face in receiving reimbursement for their treatment.

An interesting discovery about some Irish women exposed to the hepatitis C virus in the late 1970s has led scientists to study the possible existence of a super immune gene.

Measuring the hepatitis C virus (HCV) antigen in patients who are receiving protease inhibitors (PI) could provide an alternative to monitoring treatment response, according to a recent study.

Though testing patients in the emergency department for hepatitis C adds time to their length of stay, the benefits of detection are self-evident.

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute mapped a key protein in hepatitis C to determine why so many previous attempts at a vaccine had fallen short.

Keeping patients coming back after they start hepatitis treatment requires interventions sometimes--but there are many low-tech tactics that work.

Though under lock and key, state prisoners are considered "hard to reach" when it comes to getting them into treatment for hepatitis C. A health Affairs study looked at how states vary in attitudes, practices, and spending.

German researchers need more data before they can decide whether the hepatitis drug combo sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (Epclusa/Gilead Sciences) is better than earlier antivirals for all genotypes of hepatitis C virus.

The risk of getting Non-Hodkins Lymphoma is greater in patients co-infected with hepatitis B and hepatitis C if those patients are also receiving anti-retroviral therapy for HIV infection.

The investigational drug that AbbVie is testing in clinical trials is a pan-genotypic regimen of glecaprevir and pibrentasvir, a co-formulation dosed once a day, according to the release.

Scientists have gotten a step closer to finding novel anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapies, by investigating tripartite motif 14 (TRIM14) as a mitochondrial signaling adapter.

The concept of pre-exposure prophylaxis to prevent HIV infection is well established. In an editorial in Hepatology, and Australian researcher proposes extending the concept to people at high risk for getting hepatitis C: HIV-infected men who have sex with men.

A genetic various appears to play a role in which patients are cured of hepatitis C infection, according to researchers who looked at patients treated with interferon plus ribavirin. The next question is whether that difference might play a role in response to direct-acting antivirals as well.

Fewer than a quarter of people living with diagnosed hepatitis C infection in Australia as ov December 2015 had ever received treatment. But the arrival of direct-acting antivirals on Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme has changed that.

Patients who become frail while awaiting a liver transplant become less likely to survive. A Pittsburgh team found that physicians treating these patients often get over-optimistic assessments of how active patients are when they rely on the patients' accounts.

Direct-acting antivirals are curing hepatitis C infection, but that has not stopped the number of deaths from acute on chronic liver failure in patients who develop cirrhosis, a Mayo Clinic team reports.

Can a plant extract found in berries help treat hepatitis C virus? Spanish researchers say the flavonoid quercetin is effective in inhibiting an enzyme and interrupting the virus' replication.

The concern most likely did not come to light during clinical trials because, according to the FDA, patients who were infected with hepatitis B were excluded from participating in HCV treatment studies.

Treating prison inmates for hepatitis C infection is a key to ending the spread of the disease. A UK study found treatment works best when it can be completed before a prisoner is released or transferred.

The Penn Medicine clinical trial uses kidneys from deceased donors who were infected with the hepatitis C virus. The first person in the trial received a kidney transplant in July and then underwent treatment with a regimen of Zepatier, one of the direct acting antiviral drugs approved recently to treat the virus.

A new study examined the cost of increasingly prevalent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in both the United States and Europe and places the bill in the hundreds of billions.

Hepatitis B and C are caused by different viruses that can start as acute infections but turn chronic in some people and eventually lead to life-threatening liver damage, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While there are vaccines to prevent hepatitis A and B, there is no vaccine for hepatitis C.

Interferon treatment has long been a difficult regimen for patients with hepatitis C, but it is still used. A study found a thyroid concern.

Hepatocellular carcinoma, the cancer that can result from untreated HCV infection, can be caught earlier with MRIs than the current standard practice of monitoring with ultrasounds, a Korean team reports.

The World Health Organization (WHO) set a target to eliminate hepatitis C by 2030, and one of the ways that can become a reality is by identifying commonly infected populations. Prisons are one place where the virus thrives.

San Francisco, CA, with the backing of generous state Medicaid coverage, believes it can wipe out hepatitis C in vulnerable populations including people with HIV, intravenous drug users, homeless people, and prisoners in the city's jails.

People living with HIV/AIDS may have trouble getting authorization for HCV direct acting antivirals. Amida Care in NYC, a Medicai MCO came up with a plan.

According to Charles King, President and CEO of Housing Works, "It really doesn't matter what part of the world you're in. If you're having to struggle with issues around sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, homelessness, addiction, mental illness, they are all drivers of very bad health outcomes for people - whether you're talking about HIV, hepatitis C, or tuberculosis."

A study of Scottish patients who had been treated and cured of hepatitis C found that the group had a higher mortality rate compared to the general population.

Researchers say they have found a new and potentially cheaper and better way to diagnose HCV.