Check out what we have in store for you in the October Newsletter

Dear Advocaters,

Halloween is almost here and we have some informative but scary articles in this month’s HCV Advocate newsletter:

• • HealthWise – Jailed for Hepatitis C –  by Lucinda Porter, RN is an informative article about making hepatitis C a crime.  In fact, in some states, it already is a crime.
    “It used to be that having hepatitis C would land you in the doctor’s office. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that it could land me in jail. However, theoretically it could.”
  • Hepatitis Headlines – The drug epidemic and how Russian hackers are trying to mess with our health.
  • Hep C 101 – Nail Care Settings by Alan Franciscus – in this month’s column I discuss safety measures to look for when going to a nail salon or beauty parlor.
  • SnapShots by Alan Franciscus has the following recap on abstracts:
    1. Proton pump inhibitors and risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in
       patients with chronic hepatitis B or C—W. Kao, et. al
    2. Lack of patient compliance in real-world practice negatively affects sustained viral response rates to direct-acting agent therapy for hepatitis C –M. C. Marshall, et. al.

    BRIEFLY …

    1. Inovio (INO) initiates phase 1 study on hepatitis C vaccine – Zacks Equity Research
    2. Transplantation of hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody positive, nucleic acid test negative donor kidneys to HCV negative patients frequently results in seroconversion but not HCV viremia
    3. Cardiac transplantation from non-viremic hepatitis C donors
    4. Cost-effectiveness of transplanting HCV-infected livers into uninfected recipients with preemptive antiviral therapy

• • What’s Up – We have updated the following Extrahepatic Manifestation Fact Sheets:
    • Essential Cryoglobulinemic Vasculitis
    • Porphyria Cutanea Tarda
    • Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
    • Pruritus
    • Overview of Extrahepatic Manifestations

• Watch our patient video about treating and curing HCV.
• Do you have hepatitis C?  Get support.  Get answers.  A free program for patients – PackHealth.

To Your Health and Prosperity,

Alan and the team of the HCV Advocate

Check out what we have in store for you in the August Newsletter

Greetings Advocaters!

It’s August – the hottest month of the year!  Hot weather brings me to the need to stay well hydrated with water and clear fluids.  To learn more about water read our information factsheet click here http://hcvadvocate.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/SEM_Water.pdf

In this month’s HCV Advocate newsletter, the following articles are available:

• HealthWise – Hepatitis C and Sugar by Lucinda Porter, RN – Lucinda discusses effects of sugar on the body, hepatitis C, and fatty liver
• Hepatitis Headlines: (1) State Prisons Fail to Offer Cure to 144,000 Inmates with Deadly Hepatitis C, (2) What’s Being Done to Stop the Spread of Hepatitis A in the Midwest?
• SnapShots by Alan Franciscus:
  • Efficacy of sofosbuvir and velpatasvir, with and without ribavirin, in patients with HCV genotype 3 infection and cirrhosis,
  • Incidence and spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C (HCV) in PWID at the Stockholm needle exchange – importance for HCV elimination,
  • Microenvironment eradication of hepatitis C: A novel treatment paradigm,
  • All‐oral direct‐acting antiviral therapy against hepatitis C virus (HCV) in human immunodeficiency virus/HCV–coinfected subjects in real‐world practice: Madrid coinfection registry findings
• Briefly……
  • Abstract:  Use of ribavirin in viruses other than hepatitis C. A review of the evidence,
  • Genotype from Punjab, India: Expanding classification of hepatitis C virus into 8 genotypes
• What’s Up!
  • The Easy C Guide to HIV and HCV Coinfection
  • HIV/HCV Fact Sheet:  Depression
  • HIV/HCV Coinfection:  What Are Drug Interactions?
  • HIV/HCV Fact Sheet:  The Liver
• Watch our patient video about treating and curing HCV
• Do you have hepatitis C?  Get support.  Get answers.  A free program for patients – PackHealth.

To Your Health,

Alan and the team of the HCV Advocate

Check out what we have in store for you in the June Newsletter

Dear Advocaters,

We are continuing our conference coverage of the International Liver Congress 2018 and we have the following posters and presentations:

More of Lucinda’s Highlights from the 2018 International Liver Congress:

• STUDY Abstract: THU-099 Lowering the upper limit of serum alanine aminotransferase levels may detect significant liver disease in the elderly – H. Schmilovitz-Weiss, et al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-100 Hepatitis C patients with HIV co-infection demonstrate unique liver-related complications and health behaviors compared to HCV mono-infected patients – M. Lu, et al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-399 Incidence and prevalence of extrahepatic manifestations of HCV – H. El-Serag, et al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-418 Lymphomas incidence in HIV/HCV coinfected versus HIV monoinfected patients over twenty-one years of follow up (1993–2014) – A.M. de Cea, et al.
• STUDY Abstract: FRI-368 Long-term immunological and clinical impact of HCV eradication with directacting antivirals in patients with HCV-associated cryoglobulinemia vasculitis – M. Bonacci, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-412 Among 1945–1965 birth cohort patients with at least one additional hepatitis C virus risk factor, one in eight were positive for HCV antibody: an underserved safety-net population experience – G. Hirode, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-429 Strong increase of acute HCV infections in HIV-negative men having sex with men – L. Cotte, et. al.

More of Alan’s Highlights from the 2018 International Liver Congress:

• STUDY Abstract: GS-018 Long-term follow-up of patients with chronic HCV infection and compensated or decompensated cirrhosis following treatment with sofosbuvir-based regimens – A. Mangia, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: LBO-008 A phase 3b, open-label, randomized, pragmatic study of glecaprevir/ pibrentasvir +/− ribavirin (RBV) for HCV genotype 1 subjects who previously failed an NS5A inhibitor + sofosbuvir (SOF) therapy – A. Lok, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-121 Track, Trace & Treat: Results from a retrieval strategy to identify lost to follow-up chronic hepatitis c patients – I. Munsterman, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: LBP-0231 The percentage of patients with HCV infection in need of a liver transplant is rapidly declining while their survival after transplantation is improving: a study based on European Liver Transplant Registry – G. Perricone, et al.
• STUDY Abstract: FRI-028 Liver transplant waitlist mortality, transplantation rates and post-liver transplant outcomes in Hispanics – P.J. Thuluvath, et al.
• STUDY ABSTRACT: FRI-374 The impact of sustained virologic response on severe fatigue in patients with chronic hepatitis C: the role of HCV viremia and co-morbidities – Z. Younossi, et. al.
• STUDY Abstract: THU-075 hepatitis C screening within the National Elimination Program in the country of Georgia – A. Gamkrelidze, et. al.
• BRIEFLY…
  • STUDY Abstract: THU-075 hepatitis C screening within the National Elimination Program in the country of Georgia – A. Gamkrelidze, et. al.
  • STUDY Abstract: THU-104 The first result from the general population hepatitis screening in Mongolia: 38% of 40– 65-year-olds screened and anti-HCV prevalence of 15.6% among 40– 65-year-olds – B. Dashtseren, et. al.
  • STUDY Abstract: PS-090 Direct-acting antiviral treatment in sub-Saharan Africa: A prospective trial of ledipasvir/ sofosbuvir for chronic hepatitis C infection in Rwanda (The SHARED Study) – N. Gupta, et. al.

Hepatitis Materials Available:
We have a limited supply of free materials available. They are pre-packaged in the following quantities:

• A Box of 1,500 Palm cards
• A box of 1,000 Palm cards, 500 Baby Boomer postcards, & 500 website cards.

Please email us at Rosanne1956@hotmail.com if you have a need for materials to distribute.

Pack Health
Don’t forget to check out Pack Health: a free resource to help patients navigate their HCV treatment journey from applying for treatment to cure.

1. Enter your contact info
2. Use promo code: HCV2017
3. Get 3 months of membership free! As easy as 1-2-3!

Questions? Call us at 885-255-2362 8am-5pm | Monday-Friday • Get a personal Health Advisor to coach you on your journey • Develop a personalized plan – you set the goals, we’ll help you get there • Find answers and accountability to get the results you want • Use the tools and guides we send you to track your progress.

To Your Health,

Alan and the team of the HCV Advocate

Check out what we have in store for you in the April Newsletter

Dear Advocaters,

In this issue of the HCV Advocate newsletter we have SnapShots, new articles as well as a new feature called Hepatitis Headlines.  I hope you enjoy this new feature.

In this issue:

Hepatitis Research at CROI 2018 by Lucinda Porter, RN – The annual conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) was recently held.  CROI is a gathering of top researchers from around the world who share the latest studies, important developments, and best research methods in the ongoing battle against HIV/AIDS and related infectious diseases. Below are short summaries of some of the presentations pertinent to hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) that I found most interesting. Note that conference posters are preliminary investigations, and are not conclusive until the data are published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Read more …
Hepatitis Headlines – When hepatitis C makes the headlines, it is usually bad news. However, an article in Forbes had good news indeed. “The VA Will Eliminate Hepatitis C in Veterans by Year-End,” wrote John LaMattina on March 1, 2018.
Read more …
SnapShots  by Alan Franciscus

• The Adverse Effects of Interferon-Free Regimens in 149 816 Chronic Hepatitis C Treated Egyptian Patients—D. Attia, et. al.
• Increases in Acute Hepatitis C Virus Infection Related to a Growing Opioid Epidemic and Associated Injection Drug Use, United States, 2004 to 2014—Jon E. Zibbell, PhD, et. al.
• Sofosbuvir-Based Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapies for HCV in People Receiving Opioid Substitution Therapy: An Analysis of Phase 3 Studies—J. Grebely, et. al.
  Read more …

HealthWise: Alcohol and Liver Transplantation by Lucinda Porter, RN – Imagine that you have a thirty-something year-old daughter or son. Your adult child is the parent of your grandchild, who is the love of your life. Tragedy has struck. Your adult child is a heavy drinker, and is now in the intensive care unit, fighting to live. Your child needs a liver transplant, and will die without one, leaving your grandchild minus a parent.
Read more …

What’s Up  We have reviewed or updated the following fact sheets:

• Injection Techniques Vein Care
• Water
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Maintaining a Positive Attitude

Don’t forget to check out PackHealth.com for a free resource to help patients navigate their HCV treatment journey.   Click on PackHealth.com/hcv and use promo code HCV2017

Check out our Hep C Video of a patient journey through treatment and cure . . .

To Your Health,

Alan and the team of the HCV Advocate