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Hepatitis C Causing Liver Damage in Greater Numbers: Study
Posted 5 days ago by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, May 22 – Hundreds of thousands of Americans infected with chronic hepatitis C virus could develop potentially life-threatening liver complications over the next few years, according to a new study. Researchers evaluated medical insurance claims data and found that more than 200,000 hepatitis C patients had advanced liver disease in 2008, and estimated that another 300,000 patients could have advanced liver disease by 2015. The risk of developing advanced liver disease is especially high among baby boomers, who account for 82 percent of hepatitis C patients in the United States, according to the findings, which are scheduled to be presented Tuesday at the Digestive Disease Week meeting in San Diego. The study was funded by Vertex Pharmaceuticals, makers of the hepatitis C drug Incivek (telaprevir). "This alarming finding places additional stress on an already overburdened ... Read more
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Test Baby Boomers for Hepatitis C, Says CDC
Posted 9 days ago by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, May 18 – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants all Americans born between 1945 and 1965 – the baby boom generation – tested for hepatitis C. Most cases of the potentially deadly disease occur in this age group, and most were infected in their teens and 20s and don't know they are infected, the agency said. "CDC views this as an unrecognized health crisis and we needed to take a bold action because current strategies weren't working," said Dr. John Ward, director of the division of viral hepatitis at CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. "The recommendation is for a one-time hepatitis C virus test for all persons born between 1945 and 1965," Ward said. Deaths from the virus topped 15,000 in 2007, according to the CDC. "The great majority of people – 75 percent – of the 3.2 million Americans living with hepatitis C ... Read more
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Infection Causes 1 in 6 Cancers Worldwide: Study
Posted 19 days ago by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, May 9 – One in six cancers worldwide is caused by preventable or treatable infections, a new study finds. Infections cause about 2 million cancer cases a year, and 80 percent of those cases occur in less developed areas of the world, according to the study, which was published online May 8 in The Lancet Oncology. Of the 7.5 million cancer deaths worldwide in 2008, about 1.5 million were due to potentially preventable or treatable infections. "Infections with certain viruses, bacteria and parasites are one of the biggest and most preventable causes of cancer worldwide," lead authors Catherine de Martel and Martyn Plummer, from the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France, said in a journal news release. "Application of existing public-health methods for infection prevention – such as vaccination, safer injection practice or antimicrobial treatments – ... Read more
Related support groups: Cancer, Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B, Helicobacter Pylori Infection, Human Papilloma Virus, Cervical Cancer, Human Papillomavirus Prophylaxis
FDA Medwatch Alert: Victrelis (boceprevir) and Ritonavir-Boosted Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Protease Inhibitor Drugs: Drug Safety Communication - Drug Interactions
Posted 26 Apr 2012 by Drugs.com
[UPDATED 04/26/2012] FDA notified healthcare professionals that the Victrelis drug label has been revised to state that co-administration of Victrelis (boceprevir), a hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor, along with certain ritonavir-boosted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease inhibitors, is not recommended. The findings of a drug-drug interaction study and clinical trial showed that co-administration increased of the possibility of reducing the effectiveness of the medicines, permitting the amount of HCV or HIV virus in the blood to increase. Ritonavir-boosted HIV protease inhibitors include ritonavir-boosted Reyataz (atazanavir), ritonavir-boosted Prezista (darunavir), and Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir). [Posted 02/09/2012] ISSUE: FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients that drug interactions between the hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor Victrelis ( ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, HIV Infection, Victrelis, Kaletra, Norvir Soft Gelatin, Norvir, Ritonavir, Reyataz, Prezista, Boceprevir, Atazanavir, Lopinavir/Ritonavir, Emtricitabine/lopinavir/ritonavir/tenofovir, Darunavir
Hepatitis C Now Kills More Americans Than HIV
Posted 20 Feb 2012 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Feb. 20 – Deaths from hepatitis C have increased steadily in the United States in recent years, in part because many people don't know they have disease, a new government report says. More Americans now die of hepatitis C than from HIV, the AIDS-causing virus, according to 1999-2007 data reviewed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). And most of those dying are middle-aged. "These data underscore the urgent need to address the health threat posed by chronic hepatitis B and C in the United States," said investigator Dr. Scott Holmberg, chief of the Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch in CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis. About 3.2 million Americans are infected with hepatitis C, a major cause of liver cancer and cirrhosis, the CDC authors said. An estimated one-half to three-quarters of infected adults are unaware they have the disease, which progresses ... Read more
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Stem Cells May Further Hepatitis C Research
Posted 31 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Jan. 31 – Using stem cells to create liver-like cells for laboratory research may advance efforts to find out why people respond differently to hepatitis C infection, scientists say. It's not clear why some people are resistant to hepatitis C, while others are highly susceptible to the infectious disease that can cause liver inflammation and organ failure. Studying liver cells from various people could reveal genetic factors behind these different responses, but liver cells are difficult to obtain and to grow in a lab dish. Now, U.S. researchers have found a way to create liver-like cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which are made from body tissues rather than embryos. These liver-like cells can then be infected with hepatitis C. The research was published Jan. 30 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It's the first time that ... Read more
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New Drug Combo for Hepatitis C Shows Promise
Posted 18 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 18 – A new cocktail of two investigational drugs appears to have successfully cleared the hepatitis C virus in people who don't respond to standard treatment. What's more, the approach seems to work without the need for injections with interferon alpha, an onerous medication that causes serious side effects in many patients. Scientists from seven U.S. medical centers and drug maker Bristol-Myers Squibb published the small study in the Jan. 19 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine that is being heralded as "landmark" research. "We saw a sustained virologic response – the virus was undetectable in the patients – during treatment and remained undetectable after the drugs were stopped," said study author Dr. Anna Lok, director of clinical hepatology at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor. Hepatitis C virus, spread through contact with ... Read more
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Novel Hepatitis C Vaccine Shows Some Early Promise
Posted 4 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 4 – A vaccine to protect against the hepatitis C virus, which can cause severe liver damage and even liver cancer, might be possible – but it's likely years away, researchers are reporting. There is currently no vaccine for hepatitis C, which afflicts an estimated 170 million people worldwide. Like HIV, the hepatitis C virus mutates easily and has always been considered a difficult pathogen to immunize against because it's constantly changing. However, preliminary research by British and Italian scientists suggests that the virus might one day be beatable due to a novel approach. The researchers treated 41 healthy volunteers with a vaccine designed to generate a response by T cells (infection-fighting cells) against the virus' internal proteins, instead of aiming to create an antibody attack on the ever-changing outer coat of the virus. Study lead author Dr. Paul ... Read more
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Change in Hepatitis Screening May Save Lives, Money
Posted 4 Nov 2011 by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, Nov. 4 – Primary care-based screening for hepatitis C in people born between 1945 and 1965 is cost-effective and lifesaving, a new study says. This type of screening could identify more than 800,000 undiagnosed cases of hepatitis C infection in the United States and save thousands of lives each year, according to the researchers. About 1.5 percent of people in the United States are infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), which can cause inflammation and permanent liver damage. As many as three-quarters of people with HCV don't know they're infected. In 2005, HCV infection caused up to 13,000 deaths in the United States, but that number could nearly triple by 2030 if current recommendations for HCV diagnosis and treatment remain unchanged, according to the study authors. Developing hepatitis C today is less likely today because of improved screening of the universal blood ... Read more
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Hepatitis May Lurk at Barbershops, Nail Salons
Posted 1 Nov 2011 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Nov. 1 – Customers in nail salons and barbershops may be at risk for hepatitis infection if the tools used are improperly cleaned, a new U.S. study suggests. While regulations for disinfecting instruments such as nail files and brushes, finger bowls, foot basins, razors, clippers and scissors may be enough to prevent hepatitis transmission, there is no guarantee that workers will follow those rules, the researchers said. They analyzed a Virginia Department of Health report on the risk of hepatitis infection in nail salons and barber shops and were scheduled to present their findings Monday at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Washington, D.C. "Whether there is sufficient compliance with disinfection requirements is an important variable in the safety of salon and barbershop services from a public health perspective," Dr. David A. ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B
CDC Moves to Make Organ Transplantation Safer
Posted 21 Sep 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 21 – More thorough donor screening and more advanced organ testing to help protect transplant patients from infectious diseases are recommended in a draft of an updated organ transplant guideline released Wednesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The goal of the new guideline is to reduce infections such as HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV). Screening is already done for HIV, but HBV and HCV should be added to the screening process, the CDC said. From 2007 to 2010, the CDC was involved in more than 200 investigations of suspected, unexpected transmission of HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C through transplants. In some of the confirmed cases, the transplant recipient died due to the infection. The existing guideline was created in 1994. Other major proposed changes to the guideline include ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B, Organ Transplant
Tailored Hepatitis C Therapy May Cut Treatment Time in Half
Posted 14 Sep 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 14 – Patients infected with hepatitis C virus who have an early favorable response to a new three-drug regimen can be cured of the disease in half the normal time, a new study says. In the multinational study, researchers showed that tailoring patients' treatment regimen to their response to the drugs, which is known as response-guided therapy, enabled many patients to cut treatment time in half and still achieve the same cure rates. The paper was published Sept. 15 in the New England Journal of Medicine. "Patients treated with this regimen who clear virus from their blood by 4 weeks of therapy and who remain virus negative after 12 weeks of therapy can shorten total treatment time from 48 to 24 weeks and have an excellent chance of hepatitis C virus cure," said the study's lead author, Dr. Kenneth E. Sherman, Gould Professor of Medicine and director of the digestive ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, Incivek, Pegasys, Ribavirin, Victrelis, PegIntron, Copegus, Telaprevir, Rebetol, Peginterferon Alfa-2B, Rebetron, Ribasphere, Boceprevir, Peginterferon Alfa-2A, Virazole
Hepatitis Rates Soar Among IV Drug Users, Study Finds
Posted 27 Jul 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, July 27 – About 10 million injection drug users worldwide have hepatitis C, and 1.3 million have hepatitis B, a new study reports. Hepatitis can lead to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. Researchers analyzed international data and found that rates of hepatitis C infection among injection drug users (IDUs) were 60 to 80 percent in 25 countries and greater than 80 percent in 12 other countries. These countries included Spain (80 percent), Norway (76 percent), Germany (75 percent), France (74 percent), United States (73 percent), China (67 percent), Canada (64 percent), Italy (81 percent), Portugal (83 percent), Pakistan (84 percent), the Netherlands (86 percent), Thailand (90 percent) and Mexico (97 percent). Lower rates were seen in New Zealand (52 percent), Australia (55 percent) and the United Kingdom (50 percent), the researchers noted. The countries believed to ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B
New Drug Effectively Treats Hepatitis C
Posted 22 Jun 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, June 22 – The recently approved drug Incivek, combined with two standard drugs, is highly effective at treating hepatitis C, a notoriously difficult-to-manage liver disease, two new studies show. The drug works not only in patients just starting treatment, but in those who failed earlier treatment, the research found. The hepatitis C virus can lurk in the body for years, causing liver damage, cirrhosis and even liver failure. "This is a significant advance in the treatment of hepatitis C," said Dr. David Bernstein, chief of the division of gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset N.Y., who was not involved in either study. "We know that if we can get rid of the hepatitis C, we can prevent the progression of [liver] disease," he said. "This means we can prevent the progression of cirrhosis, we can prevent the development of ... Read more
Related support groups: Hepatitis C, Incivek, Victrelis
Researchers Find Cousin of Hepatitis C Virus in Dogs
Posted 24 May 2011 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, May 23 – Researchers report that they've discovered a virus similar to the human hepatitis C virus in dogs, a finding that might provide insight into how the germ evolved in people and perhaps lead to better treatments. About 200 million people around the world are thought to suffer from hepatitis C, including an estimated 3.2 million chronically infected people in the United States. Many don't know they're infected with the liver-damaging virus that causes the disease, which means they can spread it to others without realizing it. The new findings suggest that hepatitis C may have "jumped" from dogs to humans more than five centuries ago, the researchers said. "Considering the origin of HIV, we expected to find the closest homologs, or genetic relatives, of [hepatitis C virus] in non-human primates," study author Dr. Amit Kapoor, an investigator with Columbia University's ... Read more
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