Interferon-free Treatment of Hepatitis C
Interferon-free Treatment of Hepatitis C
This is a very exciting time for the field of CHC. There are many potential therapeutic options for treatment, and it is not yet clear whether there will be a single major treatment option used for all genotypes of HCV (perhaps a single DAA combined with RBV), or whether there will be an individualized therapeutic approach that considers viral genotype, IL28B genotype, resistance mutations and other factors in planning a treatment for each patient. Many phase 3 trial results are pending. Key challenges include fully evaluating optimal combinations of drugs for different genotypes further elucidating the role of RBV, optimizing durations of treatment and also careful development of new treatments in order to minimize the risk of development of drug resistance. If these things are done well, then there may be a truly realizable goal of providing curative management for the majority of patients with HCV who are treated.
Conclusions
This is a very exciting time for the field of CHC. There are many potential therapeutic options for treatment, and it is not yet clear whether there will be a single major treatment option used for all genotypes of HCV (perhaps a single DAA combined with RBV), or whether there will be an individualized therapeutic approach that considers viral genotype, IL28B genotype, resistance mutations and other factors in planning a treatment for each patient. Many phase 3 trial results are pending. Key challenges include fully evaluating optimal combinations of drugs for different genotypes further elucidating the role of RBV, optimizing durations of treatment and also careful development of new treatments in order to minimize the risk of development of drug resistance. If these things are done well, then there may be a truly realizable goal of providing curative management for the majority of patients with HCV who are treated.
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