Hepatitis B
July 28 Is World Hepatitis Day
- Details
- Category: Hepatitis B
- Published on Tuesday, 28 July 2015 00:00
- Written by HIVandHepatitis.com
July 28 is World Hepatitis Day, an opportunity to raise awareness about viral hepatitis and its consequences. This year's theme is "4000 Voices," reflecting the estimated 4000 people who die from viral hepatitis -- primarily hepatitis B and C -- each day, out of the approximately 400 million thought to be infected worldwide.
Antiviral Treatment for Hepatitis B Improves Liver Function after Decompensation
- Details
- Category: Approved HBV Drugs
- Published on Thursday, 09 July 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Early treatment with antiviral therapy can restore liver function and increase survival in chronic hepatitis B patients with decompensated cirrhosis who might otherwise need a liver transplant, according to a Korean study published in the June 2015 issue of Hepatology.
EASL 2015: Stopping Tenofovir is Safe for Hepatitis B Patients on Long-term Therapy
- Details
- Category: HBV Treatment
- Published on Thursday, 28 May 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Most hepatitis B patients who stopped taking tenofovir (Viread) after more than 3 years on treatment had good outcomes, according to a presentation at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 50th International Liver Congress last month in Vienna. Although all patients who stopped tenofovir saw their HBV viral load rise, most maintained normal ALT levels and only a few needed to restart therapy.
Telbivudine Prevents Mother-to-Child Hepatitis B Virus Transmission
- Details
- Category: HBV Prevention
- Published on Wednesday, 17 June 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Women with a high hepatitis B viral load who were treated with the antiviral drug telbivudine (Tyzeka) had a lower risk of transmitting the virus to their babies during pregnancy or birth -- in fact, none did so -- compared to untreated women whose infants only received standard immunoprophylaxis, according to a Chinese study reported in the June edition of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
EASL 2015: HBV Patients on Long-term Entecavir or Tenofovir Have Low Mortality, HCC Still a Risk
- Details
- Category: HBV Disease Progression
- Published on Wednesday, 27 May 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
More than 95% of people with chronic hepatitis B were still alive after 5 years on antiviral therapy with entecavir (Baraclude) or tenofovir (Viread), and most deaths were due to non-liver-related causes, but hepatocellular carcinoma was still a major factor affecting mortality, researchers reported presented at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 50th International Liver Congress last month in Vienna.
EASL 2015: Using Interferon with Hepatitis B Antivirals Raises Likelihood of HBsAg Loss
- Details
- Category: HBV Treatment
- Published on Tuesday, 09 June 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Treating chronic hepatitis B with tenofovir plus pegylated interferon for 48 weeks resulted in a higher rate of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) clearance than either drug taken alone, though the response rate was still just 9%, according to a study presented at the recent European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 50th International Liver Congress in Vienna. Other researchers reported that adding 48 weeks of interferon to nucleoside/nucleotide therapy increased the rate of HBsAg loss to about the same level, and switching to interferon may be effective for selected patients.
EASL 2015: Prenylation Inhibitor Lonafarnib Lowers Hepatitis Delta Viral Load During Therapy
- Details
- Category: Hepatitis Delta (HDV)
- Published on Tuesday, 12 May 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Lonafarnib, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor that interferes with viral assembly, reduced hepatitis delta virus (HDV) levels by more than 3 log in a Phase 2 study presented at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 50th International Liver Congress last month in Vienna. Combining lonafarnib with pegylated interferon for 8 weeks led to significantly greater HDV RNA declines than lonafarnib alone, but boosting with ritonavir achieved an even greater effect with an all-oral regimen. HDV viral load rose again after stopping therapy, however, and researchers are now evaluating longer treatment durations.
ASCO 2015: PD-1 Checkpoint Inhibitor Nivolumab Shows Promise against Liver Cancer
- Details
- Category: Liver Cancer/HCC
- Published on Tuesday, 02 June 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
Bristol-Myers Squibb's PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab (Opdivo) was a star of the show at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting this week in Chicago, with study results showing that the drug demonstrated anti-tumor activity against hepatocellular carcinoma in a Phase 1/2 study, along with further Phase 3 evidence of its effectiveness against lung cancer and melanoma.
EASL 2015: Nucleic Acid Polymer REP 2139-Ca Shows Promise Against Hepatitis B and Delta Viruses
- Details
- Category: Experimental HBV Drugs
- Published on Monday, 11 May 2015 00:00
- Written by Liz Highleyman
The nucleic acid-based polymer REP 2139-Ca lowered hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) levels and significantly reduced hepatitis B and hepatitis delta viral loads when combined with immunotherapy, according to presentations at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 50th International Liver Congress last month in Vienna.
More Articles...
- EASL 2015: Expanded Vaccination and Treatment Could Help Eliminate Hepatitis B Worldwide
- Global Hepatitis B Epidemic Treatable at Cost of Just $36 per Patient per Year
- World Health Organization Issues First Hepatitis B Prevention and Treatment Guidelines
- Gut Microbes May Play a Role in Age-Related Hepatitis B Virus Clearance
- 11. Hepatitis B: Interferon Boosts Cure Rate, Tenofovir Works Long-Term
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