hep c treatment?
Question:
Answers:
Currently available Hepatitis C treatment includes Pegylated Interferon - an immunomodulator (stimulated the immune system) and Ribavirin (a nucleoside agent - unknown mechanism). Pegylated Interferon is taken once weekly via subcutaneous injection and the ribavirin is taken orally, usually twice a day (dose varies based upon body weight and HCV genotype).
There are several Hepatitis C genotypes or varietes of HCV. Genotypes 1 and 4 generally require longer treatment (usually a minimum of 48 weeks) while genotypes 2 and 3 can be treated for 6 months or less - new studies have examined 14 or 16 week regimens.
Interferon can be difficult to tolerate - it causes tiredness, muscle aches, decreased blood cells to name a few side effects. Ribavirin can also cause side effects and sometimes the dose needs to be reduced.
The liklihood of response is around 50% for genotypes 1 and 4 (meaning that about half the people treated for 48 weeks will clear the Hepatitis C virus). For genotypes 2 and 3, the response rates are higher and can approach 90% (many more people are able to clear the virus.
Factors such as genotypes 1 or 4, high viral load (amount of virus in the body), alcohol use, cirrhosis (scarring of the liver), older age, male sex, and heavey body weight may contribute to a worse response.
There are investigational agents currently being studies, including VX950 and SCH 503034 (HCV protease inhibitors) as well as polymerase nucleoside inhibitors (NM283 or valopicitabine). Currently, these are all being studied in combination with Pegylated Interferon. Contact an academic medical center or visit http://www.clinicaltrials.gov to find studies for which you may be eligible.
If you need treatment, be sure to get plenty of rest, drink lots of water, and take your medication EXACTLY as prescribed. Contact your doctor immediately if you experience any side effects.
For excellent information, check out http://www.hcvadvocate.org
Also, visit http://www.pegasys.com for information about pegylated interferon.
Other Answers:
Now, the drug mostly used on treating Hepatitis C is interferon, and interferon has certain effect on some type of Hepatitis C, but has no effect on type Ⅰb Hepatitis C. And the rate of HCVRNA turn to negative is about 25% on treating type Ⅱb, Ⅲb Hepatitis C which is suitable for interferon. Interferon can let some patients’ HCVRNA turn to negative, but is easy to rebound, and has obvious side effect, which can make some patients to suffer fever, muscular pain, baldness and other hard-to-endure reactions, so has to break off use of it. Together with long term course, expensive cost, makes some patients to be unable to afford it. Which can be said that the drug to treat Hepatitis C is far to satisfy clinical demand.
There are new drugs under development like the protease inhibitors (including VX 950) and polymerase inhibitors (such as NM 283), but development of these is still in the early phase. One protease inhibitor, BILN 2061, had to be discontinued due to safety problems early in the clinical testing. Some more modern new drugs that provide some support in treating HCV are Albuferon, Zadaxin, and DAPY. Antisense Morpholino oligos have shown promise in preclinical studies and began human clinical trials in 2005 at Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, California and Alpine Clinical Research Center, Inc., Boulder, Colorado
Source(s):
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