Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major public health problem and a leading cause of chronic liver disease. Over 150 million people worldwide have chronic HCV infection and are at risk of developing its life-threatening complications. Acute infection is usually asymptomatic, with most patients unaware that they have contracted the virus. Some patients clear the virus spontaneously, but most become chronic carriers. If carriers are identified, they can be treated with antiviral therapy, the main goal being prevention of cirrhosis, liver failure and hepatocellular carcinoma by eradicating the virus. During the past decade, there has been impressive progress in the efficacy and tolerability of therapy, with modern treatment regimens able to eradicate the virus in >90% of cases with minimal adverse effects. However, therapy is costly, many infected individuals are unaware that they carry the virus, and for many there are barriers preventing them from accessing medical care. In the future, HCV could be eliminated, but to achieve this strategies to increase screening for infection and improve the uptake of treatment are needed.
Cirrhosis, directly acting antiviral agents, elimination, hepatitis C virus, hepatocellular carcinoma, MRCP, people who inject drugs
752-757
Buchanan, Ryan
9499f713-f684-4046-be29-83cd9d6f834d
Nash, Kathryn L.
eda1639b-5700-44bb-9d15-93e14c646b2a
November 2019
Buchanan, Ryan
9499f713-f684-4046-be29-83cd9d6f834d
Nash, Kathryn L.
eda1639b-5700-44bb-9d15-93e14c646b2a
Abstract
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major public health problem and a leading cause of chronic liver disease. Over 150 million people worldwide have chronic HCV infection and are at risk of developing its life-threatening complications. Acute infection is usually asymptomatic, with most patients unaware that they have contracted the virus. Some patients clear the virus spontaneously, but most become chronic carriers. If carriers are identified, they can be treated with antiviral therapy, the main goal being prevention of cirrhosis, liver failure and hepatocellular carcinoma by eradicating the virus. During the past decade, there has been impressive progress in the efficacy and tolerability of therapy, with modern treatment regimens able to eradicate the virus in >90% of cases with minimal adverse effects. However, therapy is costly, many infected individuals are unaware that they carry the virus, and for many there are barriers preventing them from accessing medical care. In the future, HCV could be eliminated, but to achieve this strategies to increase screening for infection and improve the uptake of treatment are needed.
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e-pub ahead of print date: 5 October 2019
Published date: November 2019
Keywords:
Cirrhosis, directly acting antiviral agents, elimination, hepatitis C virus, hepatocellular carcinoma, MRCP, people who inject drugs
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 437117
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/437117
ISSN: 1357-3039
PURE UUID: 5bfbbd1b-9eed-4771-af28-1e20e1c3f1a8
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Date deposited: 17 Jan 2020 17:34
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 02:03
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Author:
Kathryn L. Nash
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