Hepatitis C: Promising Treatment Developments

Over the past few years, enormous strides have been made in treatment options for people living with hepatitis C, a form of viral hepatitis that causes chronic liver disease. Treatments in the past were difficult to tolerate, produced numerous side effects, and for a large percentage of patients, were often unsuccessful. Promising new drugs, however, will likely reduce the burden of treatment (the work patients do to care for themselves, such as visiting the doctor or going for medical tests), produce quicker results, and cause fewer and less profound side effects. (more…)

Sovaldi, the $1,000-a-Day Pill for Hepatitis C

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 3.2 million people in the U.S. have chronic hepatitis C infections. Most of them haven’t been diagnosed.”

The NPR story reported that “Sovaldi is the first hepatitis C pill that doesn’t have to be accompanied by interferon for some types of hepatitis.”

“Sovaldi has been found to be remarkably effective, essentially curing 90 percent or more patients with a common form of hepatitis C in 12 weeks.”

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October is National Liver Cancer Awareness Month

Liver cancer may be less well-known than other cancer types, but it is the fifth most common cancer in the world.  And despite progress in other fields, liver cancer is one of the few cancers whose rate in the United States is continuing to rise.  Liver cancer, whose medical term is hepatocellular carcinoma, is tumor that starts in the liver and can spread to other organs if left untreated.

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Baby Boomers Should Get Tested for Hepatitis C!

According to the CDC, all “Baby Boomers” should get tested for hepatitis C. This is based only on age and for this recommendation Baby Boomers are defined as those born between 1945 and 1965

Hepatitis C (HCV) is a viral infection of the liver that can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer, liver transplant, and death. It has been found to be very common in this age group, and, as they age, the consequences of the infection can be more severe and be irreversible before there are any symptoms at all!

The CDC also recommends that people who test positive for HCV be counseled about alcohol intake and referred to a liver disease specialist, who is familiar with the treatments available. This is particularly important now for several reasons.

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