Hepatitis D Virus

The Hepatitis B Foundation has awarded Stephen Urban, PhD, the 2023 Baruch S. Blumberg Prize for his development of bulevirtide, the first drug approved for the treatment of hepatitis D.

The FDA informed Gilead that it could not approve its new drug application for bulevirtide, an investigational treatment for chronic hepatitis D virus infection and compensated liver disease.

The FDA issued a complete response letter to Gilead indicating it cannot approve the company’s new drug application that seeks approval of bulevirtide for chronic hepatitis D virus infection and compensated liver disease.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted areas in which the medical community can improve patient care and access to treatment for numerous conditions, including hepatitis D virus.

Healio spoke with John D. Scott, MD, MSc, FIDSA, chief digital health officer at UW Medicine, professor of allergy and infectious diseases at University of Washington and medical director at the Liver Clinic at Harborview Medical Center, to learn more about what PCPs can do to help prevent and screen for HDV.

Without approved treatment options for hepatitis D, screening has largely fallen by the wayside; however, promising therapies in phase 3 trials may shift that paradigm, according to a presenter at the GUILD Conference.

Hepatitis D, in hepatitis B surface antigen-positive individuals, may remain undiagnosed due to lack of testing, particularly in primary care settings, according to a poster.

Investigation into the epidemiology of hepatitis D in Cameroon revealed intrahousehold infection and large differences in prevalence between regions, with cases concentrated in forested areas close to the equator, which has been seen in other tropical areas.

Hepatitis delta virus has a higher association with health care and cost burden on patients than hepatitis B virus, according to a study by the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine.

Results from the REP 301 and REP 401 studies showed combination therapy with REP2139 and pegylated interferon led to high rates of hepatitis B seroconversion in patients coinfected with hepatitis B and hepatitis D with more than half of treated patients also achieving functional cure of hepatitis D, according to data presented at HEP DART 2019.