Hepatitis C News

Recent study data revealed an association between coffee consumption and a reduced risk for developing chronic liver disease, particularly in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic liver disease and chronic hepatitis C.

A recent interview with a Gilead Sciences executive pointing fingers for drug costs at pharmacy benefit managers spurred a formal letter from Express Scripts requesting a lower price for the company’s popular hepatitis C medications.

Patients with chronic hepatitis C and a current hepatitis B infection have a potential risk for HBV reactivation during direct-acting antiviral therapy, according to the results of a prospective study.

Despite a recommendation from the United States Preventive Services Task Force in 2013 for one-time hepatitis C testing among baby boomers, only 13.8% reported testing in 2015, according to a survey conducted by the American Cancer Society.

The introduction of direct-acting antiviral therapy in 2013 led to a significant increase in the number of veterans treated for hepatitis C and in the sustained virologic responses achieved, according to a review of the Veteran Affairs Corporate Data Warehouse records.

Treating patients with hepatitis C and hepatocellular carcinoma or decompensated cirrhosis with all-oral direct-acting antiviral therapy prior to liver transplantation had highly effective results and was more cost effective than treating post-LT, according to simulated results of a recent study.

Direct-acting antiviral treatment cured HCV in most patients with prior hepatocellular carcinoma and in almost all patients who received a liver transplant as treatment for HCC, according to a recently published study.

Combination therapy with elbasvir/grazoprevir achieved sustained virologic response at 12 weeks in patients with inherited blood disorders, according to a prospective study.

The FDA approved expansion of the indication for Technivie to include patients with chronic hepatitis C genotype 4 with compensated cirrhosis, according to an FDA report.

Top European government agencies called for key interventions to heighten focus on treating currently infected individuals and reach the goal of hepatitis elimination in Europe in a review of current hepatitis levels and the WHO’s “Global Health Sector Strategy on Viral Hepatitis 2016-2021.”