Hepatitis C Blog

Note:  this is fascinating science!

A newly developed method of inactivating hepatitis C virus (HCV) in donor lungs has the potential to increase transplantations for patients with end stage lung disease without necessitating post-transplant antiviral treatment.

“The shortage of suitable organs leads to high waiting list mortality rates. Consequently, approaches to increase organ availability are critical for realizing the maximum potential benefit of transplantation,” explained Marcelo Cypel, MD, MSc, Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and colleagues.

The investigators point out that while the use of post-transplant direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment is currently being assessed as a method of utilizing HCV-positive organs, the clearance or inactivation of the virus prior to transplantation would be a more attractive alternative. There is no rationale for DAA treatment of the lung ex-vivo, however, as viral replication is not thought to occur within the lung.

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The drugmaker Gilead Sciences has been hit with a whistle-blower suit accusing it of paying healthcare providers to boost sales of its hepatitis and HIV drugs.

In an unsealed False Claims Act case in California federal court, a whistle-blower claimed Gilead’s Frontlines of Communities in the United States program, which partners with healthcare organizations, government agencies, universities, and community groups to facilitate hepatitis and HIV screenings, resulted in billions of dollars in excess government spending.

U.S. sales of Gilead’s Sovaldi and Harvoni through both public and private payers totaled $20.6 billion after rebates from December 2013 to August 2015, according to the company’s financial reports. The drugs can cost between $80,000 and $100,000 for a full treatment cycle and Medicare spent nearly $8.2 billion before rebates for the 18-month period after Sovaldi was introduced in December 2013, the Senate found in an investigation.

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Florida Department of Corrections staff briefed a House panel on the structure and status of prison health care Wednesday before detailing some of their 2019-20 budget requests.

DOC in recent years has faced budget shortfalls, causing them to make dramatic cuts to inmate health care services. The $55 million shortfall last budget year caused officials to slash substance-abuse, mental-health and re-entry programs by more than $10 million to make ends meet.

The department had another $28 million shortfall in the current fiscal year but didn’t provide detailed projections for the 2019-20 fiscal year, which begins July 1.

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Sofosbuvir for the treatment of hepatitis C specifically in Asian American communities was well-tolerated, according to a new report.

Investigators from NYU School of Medicine identified 186 eligible patients from across 11 sites in the United States and enrolled them in their study in order to evaluate sofosbuvir-based regimens in a cohort of Asian Americans. The study authors said that there is only limited data about treatment outcomes in Asian Americans with hepatitis C.

The study period lasted from December 2013 through June 2017 and the investigators measured sustained virologic response rates at 12 and 24 weeks post-treatment. The study authors also examined secondary endpoints of safety by tolerability and adverse events.

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