Caring Ambassadors Hepatitis C Program
Monthly Literature Review
www.HepCChallenge.org
January
2009
In The News
Caring Ambassadors Program releases Hepatitis C Choices, 4th Edition
“The
Caring Ambassadors Hepatitis C Program is pleased to announce the publication
of the 4th edition of Hepatitis C Choices,
a comprehensive book that addresses all aspects of hepatitis C and its
treatment. In accordance with its mission to provide state-of-the-art
information, Caring Ambassadors has sought out the most recent advancements on
the various aspects of the disease and included these updates in the newest
edition.’ We are extremely excited about the new chapters in the 4th edition
that were authored by nationally renowned experts,’ said Lorren Sandt,
Hepatitis C Program Director. ‘We have added important new information on
mental health, hepatitis C in women and children, immunological research, and a
number of other important topics that affect the hepatitis C community.’” Read more…
FDA approves comprehensive system to test
donated blood for HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C
“The Food &
Drug Administration (FDA) today approved a new nucleic acid test from Roche to
screen donated blood for HIV-1 Group M RNA, hepatitis C RNA and hepatitis B DNA
in a single, automated assay. The test, called the cobas TaqScreen MPX Test for
use on the cobas s 201 system, is a qualitative in vitro test for comprehensive
single-assay detection of HIV-1 Group M RNA, HIV-1 Group O RNA, HIV-2 RNA,
hepatitis C virus RNA and hepatitis B virus DNA in human plasma. The test,
which is not intended for use as an aid in diagnosis, is designed to further
increase the safety of blood supplies by identifying infections earlier than
traditional serology tests.” Read more…
Peg-Intron/Rebetol combination therapy
approved for pediatric hepatitis C
“The FDA has
approved Schering-Plough’s Peg-Intron (peginterferon alfa-2b) and Rebetol
(ribavirin) combination therapy for the treatment of previously untreated
chronic hepatitis C in children ≥3 years old. This approval was based on
a clinical trial of 107 treatment-naïve children ages 3 to 17 years of age with
chronic hepatitis C and compensated liver disease. The study showed a safe and
efficacious result from the pediatric patient population. Peg-Intron and
Rebetol combination therapy is already indicated for chronic hepatitis C in
adults with compensated liver disease.”
New test can predict success of hep C
drugs
“The genetic
code of hepatitis C contains telltale patterns that reveal whether a patient
will respond to the available drugs for the virus. Studying the viruses of 94
people infected with hepatitis C, the scientists found sections of code that
were always linked to drug failure. And John Tavis of the Saint Louis
University school of medicine and his team of researchers say that a genetic
test could be deployed that would prevent unnecessary treatment.” Read more…
Program
helps ex-inmates reintegrate
“The Hepatitis Support Network of Hawaii has
established a program to help ex-offenders reintegrate into the community with
social, health and economic services. Andy Botts, director of the Prisoner
Reintegration and Family Reunification program, will see relatives of
ex-offenders and prisoners from 9 to 11 a.m. on Mondays and Thursdays at 1286
Queen Emma St. The program started Dec. 18. Botts became involved with the
Hepatitis Support Network after learning he had hepatitis C when tested in
prison. He was treated and cured by Dr. Alan Tice, medical director of
Infections Limited Hawaii. A nonviolent drug offender, Botts had been in and
out of institutions, including five years in a Thai prison, a release from the
network said. Botts will join with volunteers and faith-based and community
organizations to help ex-offenders and their families.
"Costwise, a sensible approach to the management
of nonviolent offenders would be better on the outside of a prison instead of
inside," Tice said. He said treatment for infectious diseases such as
hepatitis C "can change a person's perspective on life." Read
more…
‘You feel
like you’re talking to an angel’
“As a nurse who deals with liver disease — a
particularly trying medical field with a steady drumbeat of dispiriting news —
Martha Shea does everything but get away from it after hours. “I’m just
passionate about what I do,” said Ms. Shea, 57, on a recent weekend in a moment
of rare repose at her home in Wallingford.
Ms. Shea is described as tough but compassionate by
patients she has seen over the years at the Veterans Affairs hospital in West
Haven. She has worked there since 1979, first running a hepatology research lab
and since 1987, as a nurse — now the nurse-manager of the hepatitis C resource
center.” Read
more…
Needle/syringe
programmes and opioid substitution therapy should be widely available in
prisons to help prevent HIV transmission.
“Prisons should have needle and syringe programmes
(NSPs), opioid substitution therapy (OST) and other preventive measures in
place to prevent HIV transmission between inmates. These are the conclusions of
a Review published in the January edition of Lancet Infectious Diseases,
written by Dr Ralf Jürgens, a consultant for HIV/AIDS based in Quebec, Canada,
and colleagues on behalf of WHO. The high prevalence of HIV infection and drug
dependence among prisoners, combined with the sharing of injecting-drug
equipment, make prisons high-risk environments for the transmission of HIV and
also hepatitis C. The authors reviewed the effectiveness of interventions to
reduce risky behaviour in this context. This Review forms part of a broader
review of interventions to address HIV in prisons commissioned by WHO, together
with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, and UNAIDS, to guide countries in their
efforts to scale-up towards universal access to HIV prevention, treatment and
care by 2010.” Read
more…
Study shows dramatic drop in needlestick risks for
healthcare workers
“When working with needles, healthcare workers always
have to be concerned about contracting a life-altering or even life-threatening
infection from HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C. But after 20 years of intense
regulatory and legislative activity and innovative changes to the design and
handling of needles, U.S. healthcare workers are now significantly safer from
needlestick injuries, according to a new study from the University of Virginia
International Healthcare Worker Safety Center."Since the U.S. Needlestick
Safety and Prevention Act was passed in 2000, American healthcare workers have
benefited from an unprecedented level of protection from occupationally
transmitted diseases," says Janine Jagger, M.P.H., Ph.D., director of the
Center and co-author of the study published in the December 8 issue of the
Journal of Infection and Public Health.” Read
more…
Fresno
County, Calif., officials approve needle-exchange program
“ The Fresno County Board of Supervisors in California
on Tuesday approved a one-year needle-exchange pilot program, the Fresno Bee
reports. Supervisors voted 3-2 in support of the program, which was proposed by
County Health Officer Edward Moreno and will provide injection drug users with
clean needles in an effort to curb the spread of HIV and other bloodborne
diseases. Supervisors said that they understand concerns from some law
enforcement officials about illegal drug use but that the county needs ways to
reduce the spread of diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C. Volunteers have been
illegally dispensing 6,000 to 8,000 clean needles each Saturday to IDUs in the
county, according to advocate Dallas Blanchard, who has been distributing clean
needles for about 13 years. According to the Bee, although these efforts have
been tolerated by police, an official program previously had never been endorsed
by the Board of Supervisors, which last voted against a needle-exchange program
in 2006.” Read
more…
Controversy
of care
“A recent study, out of the University of California
at Los Angeles offered a controversial, yet straightforward, answer to the
legal and medical debate over standards of care for inmates with hepatitis C.
The researchers concluded treating chronic hepatitis C in the prison population
with interferon and antiviral drugs creates cost savings and improves the
quality of life for all inmates, sick or not. If the medical community is
starting to move in this direction, they’re not alone. An up-and-coming legal
challenge is also looking to continue the momentum swing towards increased
access to treatment. The law firm of Khorrami, Pollard & Abir is currently
filing hundreds of individual lawsuits on behalf of California inmates against
the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for failure to
properly treat inmates with hepatitis C. The firm expects the total number of
plaintiffs to grow into the thousands. “This is an important problem
nationally, it’s not just a California problem,” says Mark Ravis an attorney
representing the inmates.” Read more…
Sixth Annual
Hepatitis C Summit
“The Hepatitis C Task Force of Los Angeles brought the
medical and prevention community together on November 21 to discuss the state
of the hepatitis C epidemic in Los Angeles County. Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) Southern
California led the charge in prevention strategies for reducing the further
outbreak of the disease at this Sixth Annual Hepatitis C Summit held at the
California Endowment. Meghan Ralston, DPA’s Harm Reduction Coordinator, gave a
highly energetic presentation about how pharmacies in the Los Angeles County
are able to sell syringes without a prescription to those who need them. The Disease Prevention Demonstration Project
(DPDP) is a pilot program put together by Senate Bill 1159, the Drug Policy
Alliance, California Endowment and the LA Department of Public Health to stop
the ever increasing rates and spread of HIV and Hepatitis C. DPDP has signed up over 300 pharmacies in
the county and the number is still increasing, with new ground being broken for
those in the Antelope Valley area.” Read more…
Hepatitis C
outbreak: Infections prompt U.S. study
“Congressional concerns about disease outbreaks in
ambulatory surgery centers, including the hepatitis C outbreak at a Las Vegas
endoscopy center, have prompted a nationwide study to determine what role the
facilities play in the spread of health care-associated infections."There
have been situations across the country that have raised concerns about the
problems in those health care settings,'' said Cynthia Bascetta, director of
health care for the federal Government Accountability Office, which is doing
the study. The study, in the planning stage but expected to be complete by
February, will determine to what extent data are available on the frequency and
characteristics of health care-associated infections in ambulatory surgery
centers.Instead of just looking at how many infections occurred in outpatient
surgery centers, the study also will determine whether the facilities are
following appropriate infection-control procedures, Bascetta said."One of
the problems is that people aren't admitted into ambulatory surgery centers, so
it is much harder to figure out what the source of an infection is if that
person is being treated elsewhere,'' she said.Data will be collected from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which conducts surveillance of
disease outbreaks, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which
regulates ambulatory surgery centers and monitors their infection-control
policies.” Read more…
Health
professionals need to raise hepatitis C awareness
“Awareness of hepatitis C among health professionals
and the public needs to increase if diagnosis rates are to continue to improve,
the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has said. Although diagnosis rates are
increasing, there are still many infected individuals who remain undiagnosed,
the HPA says. The HPA highlights the importance of coverage of hepatitis C,
including GP's coverage to coincide with World Hepatitis Day. The report also
stresses the role primary care can play in increasing diagnosis rates. ‘It is
likely that many prevalent infections exist in individuals who have injected
drugs in the past and are no longer in contact with drugs services, or in those
who acquired their infections via other routes, like transfusion,' the HPA
points out. ‘For this reason, targeted hepatitis C testing in primary care is
also important.' It adds: ‘Individuals diagnosed in these settings often have
the advantage of more stable lifestyles that enablethem to more easily tolerate
and complete anti-viral therapy to clear their infections.'” Read
more…
Human
Genome's hep C drug is halfway home
“Human Genome Sciences is
halfway home. The company's hepatitis C drug, Albuferon, passed its first phase
3 trial test yesterday, but the harder test is yet to come. In a trial on
patients infected with genotypes 2 and 3 of the hepatitis C virus, Albuferon
worked just as well as Roche's Pegasys. (Genotypes refer to the virus's
different genetic variations.) Fortunately, it didn't have to work better than Pegasys, because
it's given every other week. The other interferon treatments, Pegasys and Schering-Plough's
Pegintron, require weekly shots. Since injecting interferon causes unpleasant
side effects, halving the number of injections should be a great selling point.”
Read
more…
Clinical
Trials, Cohort Studies, Pilot Studies
The
impact of diet on liver fibrosis and on response to interferon therapy in
patients with HCV-related chronic hepatitis. Loguercio C, Federico A, Masarone M, et al. Am J Gastroenterol. 2008
Dec;103(12):3159-66. Epub 2008 Sep 11. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18786125?ordinalpos=109&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Peginterferon alfa-2a relapse rates depend on weight-based ribavirin dosage in HCV-infected patients with genotype 1: results of a retrospective evaluation. Zopf S, Herold C, Hahn EG, Granslmayer M. Scand. J. Gastroenterol. 2008 Dec 31:1-5. [Epub ahead of print]
PTPN22
C1858T polymorphism and the outcome of hepatitis C virus infection.
Montes-Cano MA, García-Lozano JR, Aguilar-Reina J, et al. Viral Immunol. 2008 Dec;21(4):491-4.
Impact of
donor graft steatosis on overall outcome and viral recurrence after liver
transplantation for hepatitis C virus cirrhosis. Briceño J, Ciria R, Pleguezuelo M, et al. Liver
Transpl. 2009 Jan;15(1):37-48. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19109846?ordinalpos=10&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Does interferon use prior to liver transplant influence hepatitis C outcomes
following transplantation? Smallwood GA, Devine R, Fasola C, et al. Transplantation.
2008 Dec 27;86(12):1795-8.
Genome-wide
hepatitis C virus amino acid covariance networks can predict response to
antiviral therapy in humans.
Aurora R, Donlin MJ, Cannon NA, Tavis JE. J Clin Invest. 2008 Dec 22. pii: 37085. doi: 10.1172/JCI37085. [Epub ahead of print]
A randomized
study of extended treatment with peginterferon alpha-2b plus ribavirin based on
time to HCV RNA negative-status in patients with genotype 1b chronic hepatitis C.
Ide T, Hino T, Ogata K, et al. Am J
Gastroenterol. 2009 Jan;104(1):70-5.
Four-week pegylated interferon alpha-2a monotherapy for chronic hepatitis C with genotype 2 and low viral load: A pilot, randomized study. Tsubota A, Satoh K, Aizawa M, et al. World J Gastroenterol. 2008 Dec 21;14(47):7220-4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19084937?ordinalpos=75&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Hepatitis C virus infection and primary
Sjögren's syndrome: a clinical and serologic description of 9 patients.
Ceribelli A, Cavazzana I, Cattaneo R, et al. Autoimmun Rev. 2008 Dec;8(2):92-4.
Epub 2008 Aug 8.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18692602?ordinalpos=118&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Basic
and Applied Science, Pre-Clinical Studies
Hepatitis
C virus-specific T-cell gamma interferon and proliferative responses are more
common in perihepatic lymph nodes than in peripheral blood or liver. Moonka D, Milkovich KA, Rodriguez B, et al. J
Virol. 2008 Dec;82(23):11742-8. Epub 2008 Aug 20. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18715927?ordinalpos=113&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Peripheral
blood gene expression profile associated with sustained virologic response
after peginterferon plus ribavirin therapy for chronic hepatitis-C genotype 1.
Huang C, Chen H, Cassidy W, Howell CD. J Natl Med
Assoc. 2008 Dec;100(12):1425-33.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19110910?ordinalpos=4&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Discovery
of pentacyclic compounds as potent inhibitors of hepatitis C virus NS5B RNA
polymerase. Habermann J, Capitò E, Ferreira MD, et al. Bioorg Med
Chem Lett. 2008 Dec 13. [Epub ahead of print]
Debio 025, a cyclophilin binding molecule, is highly efficient in clearing HCV replicon containing cells, alone or when combined with Specifically Targeted Antiviral Therapy for HCV (STAT-C) inhibitors. Coelmont L, Kaptein S, Paeshuyse J, et al. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2008 Dec 22. [Epub ahead of print]
3D
cultured immortalized human hepatocytes useful to develop drugs for blood-borne
HCV. Aly HH, Shimotohno K, Hijikata M. Biochem
Biophys Res Commun. 2008 Dec 25. [Epub ahead of print]
Generation
of immune responses against HCV using dendritic cells containing NS5 protein-coated
microparticles. Gehring S, Gregory SH, Wintermeyer P, et al. Clin Vaccine
Immunol. 2008 Dec 17. [Epub ahead of print]
Role of the hepatitis C virus core+1 open
reading frame and core cis-acting RNA elements in viral RNA translation and
replication.Vassilaki N, Friebe P, Meuleman P, et al. J Virol. 2008
Dec;82(23):11503-15. Epub 2008 Sep 17.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18799568?ordinalpos=108&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Epidemiology,
Diagnostics, and Miscellaneous Works
Hepatitis
C in the elderly: Epidemiology, natural history, and treatment. Mindikoglu AL, Miller RR. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2008 Dec 10. [Epub ahead of print] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19084480?ordinalpos=77&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Fibrosis
progression in African Americans and Caucasian Americans with chronic hepatitis
C. Terrault NA, Im K, Boylan R,
Bacchetti P, et al. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2008 Dec;6(12):1403-11. Epub 2008 Aug 19.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19081528?ordinalpos=85&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Sociodemographic
trends in national ambulatory care visits for hepatitis C virus infection. Tsui JI, Maselli J, Gonzales R. Dig Dis Sci.
2008 Dec 23. [Epub ahead of print]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19104932?ordinalpos=24&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Reduced
quality of life in patients with chronic viral liver disease as assessed by
SF12 questionnaire. Svirtlih N, Pavic S, Terzic D, et al. J
Gastrointestin Liver Dis. 2008 Dec;17(4):405-9.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19104701?ordinalpos=27&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Symptomatic
acute hepatitis C in egypt: diagnosis, spontaneous viral clearance, and delayed
treatment with 12 weeks of pegylated interferon alfa-2a. Sharaf Eldin N, Ismail S, Mansour H, et al. PLoS ONE.
2008;3(12):e4085. Epub 2008 Dec 30.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19115010?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Laboratory evaluation of the UniCel DxI 800 analyser (Beckman Coulter) for
detecting HBV and HCV serological markers. Miedouge M, Legrand-Abravanel F, Lalanne C, et al. J Clin Virol.
2008 Dec 23. [Epub ahead of print]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19110466?ordinalpos=&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.SmartSearch&log$=citationsensor
Differences between
two real-time PCR-based hepatitis C virus (HCV) assays (RealTime HCV and Cobas
AmpliPrep/Cobas TaqMan) and one signal amplification assay (Versant HCV RNA
3.0) for RNA detection and quantification.Vermehren J, Kau A, Gärtner BC, et
al. J Clin Microbiol. 2008 Dec;46(12):3880-91. Epub 2008 Sep 17.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18799708?ordinalpos=106&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPa
Diagnosis of acute
hepatitis C virus infection and estimated incidence in low- and high-risk
English populations. Brant LJ, Ramsay ME, Balogun MA, Boxall E, Hale A,
Hurrelle M, Kaluba L, Klapper P, Lewis D, Patel BC, Parry J, Irving WL. J Viral
Hepat. 2008 Dec;15(12):871-7. Epub 2008 Jul 10. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18637073?ordinalpos=125&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_RESULTSPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum