Does Hepatitis C Have A Cure

How Is Hepatitis C Treated

Hepatitis C is treated using antiviral drugs.

Treatment in the first 6 months focuses on:

• treating symptoms
• preventing the spread of the disease
• preventing complications, such as liver damage

For someone who has the disease beyond 6 months, treatment includes a combination of medications. However, not everyone with this form of hepatitis C will need treatment.

Whether or not you are getting treatment, you can help lower the risk of damage to your liver by:

• avoiding alcohol

A Revolution In Hep C Treatment

More than 3 million Americans have a long-lasting hepatitis C infection. Most donât know it, because there usually aren’t symptoms.

Sofosbuvir was one of the first direct-acting antivirals to target hep C,the viru a disease spread through direct blood-to-blood contact. DAAs work in different ways to stop hep C from making copies of itself.

These drugs are kinder and gentler than the old standard of care — interferon shots and ribavirin alone. That route could take as long as a year, it only cured about half of the people, and the side effects were brutal.

âImagine taking an injection and a pill that made you feel — every day — worse than you ever felt from the infection that was being treated,â says Alexea Gaffney-Adams, MD, an infectious disease specialist in Smithtown, NY.

Side effects included flu-like symptoms, joint pain, anemia, and depression.

Limes says the old treatment felt like pouring gasoline into his system. âIt was like killing me to keep me alive.â In fact, it made his hep C worse, so his doctors took him off it.

Todayâs therapies are pills only and donât need interferon. They have very few side effects and double the cure rate — to 90% to 100%. They work in as little as 8 or 12 weeks.

âMy who had been on the older regimens — and failed, and now have the luck of being able to experience these new medications — canât believe the difference,â says Gaffney-Adams.

What Can People Do To Help The Medications Work Best

• Take the medications every day
• Stay in touch with pharmacy to be sure that all refills are ready on time
• Take the medications exactly as prescribed
• Do not skip doses
• Get all blood tests done on time
• Go to all visits with providers as recommended
• Tell the provider about all other medications that are being taken – including over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, herbs, and supplements
• Complete the entire course of medication

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How Can You Get Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne disease. The main source of infection is from blood from an infected person.

• Most cases are caused by using contaminated needles or injecting equipment to inject drugs . Even a tiny amount of an infected person’s blood left on a needle is enough to cause spread to others.
• Some people who received blood transfusions or blood prior to 1991 were infected with hepatitis C from some donor blood. Since 1991 all blood and blood products donated in the UK are screened for HCV.
• There is also a risk of contracting hepatitis C from needlestick accidents, or other injuries involving blood spillage from infected people.
• There is a small risk of contracting the virus from sharing toothbrushes, razors and other such items which may be contaminated with infected blood.
• There is even a small risk from inhaling drugs like cocaine, as these can make the inside of your nose bleed. If that happens, tiny spots of blood can fall on to the note you are using and, if that is used by someone else, your blood can travel up their nose and into their bloodstream.
• There is also a small risk from re-used equipment used for tattooing, body piercing, acupuncture, etc.
• There is a small risk that an infected mother can pass on the infection to her baby.
• There is a small risk that an infected person can pass on the virus whilst having sex.

The virus is not passed on during normal social contact, such as holding hands, hugging, or sharing cups or crockery.

Helpful Tips While Taking Hepatitis C Medications

• Always follow your health care providers’ advice, particularly the instructions on taking your medicine.
• If you have to cancel an appointment, call your provider and schedule a new one as soon as possible.
• Take good care of yourself. Eat well, drink 8 to 10 glasses of water each day, and try to get a full night’s sleep.
• Learn about the hepatitis C medications you are taking. This includes special risks and warnings.
• If taking ribavirin, use sunscreen, wear long sleeves and a hat, and limit sun exposure.
• Write down your doctor’s name and phone number. Carry this information with you at all times.
• Write the names and amounts of the medicines you are taking. Carry this information with you at all times.

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Should I Be Screened For Hepatitis C

Doctors usually recommend one-time screening of all adults ages 18 to 79 for hepatitis C. Screening is testing for a disease in people who have no symptoms. Doctors use blood tests to screen for hepatitis C. Many people who have hepatitis C dont have symptoms and dont know they have hepatitis C. Screening tests can help doctors diagnose and treat hepatitis C before it causes serious health problems.

Acute Phase Of Hepatitis C

Acute means ‘new’ or ‘for a short time’. This phase lasts for the first six months. When first infected with the virus, most people have no symptoms, or only mild ones. If symptoms do occur, they develop about 7-8 weeks after being exposed to the virus and may include feeling sick , being sick and feeling generally unwell. Some people go ‘yellow’ . This is due to a build-up of the chemical bilirubin which is made in the liver and spills into the blood in some liver conditions. It is unusual to have severe symptoms.

Following the initial infection:

• In about one quarter to one half of cases the virus is cleared from the body by the immune system within 2-6 months. If this happens then you will have no long-term effects from the virus. Younger people and women are more likely to clear the virus in this way.
• In 5 to 8 out of 10 cases, the virus remains active in the liver and bloodstream long-term. This is called chronic infection with hepatitis C.

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Treatments And Cure Rates For Hepatitis C

For many years, one of the only effective treatment options was the drug interferon. This drug required many injections over a period of six months to a year. The drug also produced unpleasant symptoms. Many people who took this drug felt like they had the flu after their treatment. Interferon treatments were only effective about half the time , and they couldnt be given to people with advanced HCV because it could worsen their health.

An oral drug called ribavirin was also available at this time. This drug had to be taken with interferon injections.

More modern treatments include oral medications that shorten the time needed to be effective. One of the first to emerge was sofosbuvir . Unlike other early treatments, this drug didnt require interferon injections to be effective.

In 2014, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a combination drug made up of ledipasvir and sofosbuvir . Its a once-daily medication in a class of drugs called direct-acting antivirals. These drugs work on the enzymes that help the virus multiply.

Treatments approved after Harvoni were designed to target people with different genotypes. A genotype can refer to a set of genes or even one gene.

Researchers have found that different drugs are more effective based on a patients genotype.

If You Notice Symptoms See A Doctor Right Away

Symptoms of hepatitis C include the following:

• Jaundice a yellowish tone to the eyes and skin
• Mild, chronic right belly pain
• Nausea
• Loss of appetite
• Fatigue

If you believe you have been exposed to hepatitis C or notice any symptoms, visit your primary care doctor as soon as possible. If you test positive for the virus, your doctor can refer you to a hepatologist to discuss your options.

“I strongly encourage all baby boomers and others who are at high risk to get tested, even if you don’t look or feel sick,” Reau says. “If you do have hepatitis C, the earlier we discover it, the more likely we can prevent it from progressing and causing more serious damage.”

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How Is Hepatitis C Spread

Hepatitis C spreads through contact with the blood of someone who has HCV. This contact may be through:

• Sharing drug needles or other drug materials with someone who has HCV. In the United States, this is the most common way that people get hepatitis C.
• Getting an accidental stick with a needle that was used on someone who has HCV. This can happen in health care settings.
• Being tattooed or pierced with tools or inks that were not sterilized after being used on someone who has HCV
• Having contact with the blood or open sores of someone who has HCV
• Sharing personal care items that may have come in contact with another person’s blood, such as razors or toothbrushes
• Being born to a mother with HCV
• Having unprotected sex with someone who has HCV

Before 1992, hepatitis C was also commonly spread through blood transfusions and organ transplants. Since then, there has been routine testing of the U.S. blood supply for HCV. It is now very rare for someone to get HCV this way.

How Can I Protect Myself From Hepatitis C Infection

If you dont have hepatitis C, you can help protect yourself from hepatitis C infection by

• not sharing drug needles or other drug materials
• wearing gloves if you have to touch another persons blood or open sores
• making sure your tattoo artist or body piercer uses sterile tools and unopened ink
• not sharing personal items such toothbrushes, razors, or nail clippers

Hepatitis C can spread from person to person during sex, but the chances are low. People who have multiple sex partners, have HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases, or who engage in rough or anal sex have a higher chance of getting hepatitis C. Talk with your doctor about your risk of getting hepatitis C through sex and about safe sex practices, such as using a latex or polyurethane condom to help prevent the spread of hepatitis C.

If you had hepatitis C in the past and your body fought off the infection or medicines cured the infection, you can get hepatitis C again. Follow the steps above, and talk with your doctor about how to protect yourself from another hepatitis C infection.

If you think you may have been exposed to the hepatitis C virus, see your doctor as soon as possible. Early diagnosis and treatment can help prevent liver damage.

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Who Is More Likely To Get Hepatitis C

People more likely to get hepatitis C are those who

• have injected drugs
• had a blood transfusion or organ transplant before July 1992
• have hemophilia and received clotting factor before 1987
• have been on kidney dialysis
• have been in contact with blood or infected needles at work
• have had tattoos or body piercings
• have worked or lived in a prison
• were born to a mother with hepatitis C
• are infected with HIV
• have had more than one sex partner in the last 6 months or have a history of sexually transmitted disease
• are men who have or had sex with men

In the United States, injecting drugs is the most common way that people get hepatitis C.13

How Effective Is Treatment

Direct-acting antivirals cure 9 out of 10 patients with hepatitis C.

Successful treatment does not give you any protection against another hepatitis C infection. You can still catch it again.

There’s no vaccine for hepatitis C.

If treatment does not work, it may be repeated, extended, or a different combination of medicines may be tried.

Your doctor or nurse will be able to advise you.

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How Common Is Hepatitis C

The exact number of people infected is not known. There are around 200,000 people chronically infected with hepatitis C in the UK. Worldwide, over 180 million people are infected. Rates of infection have been relatively stable in recent years, but deaths from hepatitis C have reduced, thought to be because treatment options have become better.

Most cases are in people who inject illegal drugs. It is estimated that up to half of injecting drug users become infected with hepatitis C.

We Now Have The Cure For Hepatitis C But Can We Afford It

A long, difficult and costly research effort gives doctors a new cure for hepatitis C

• Print

A decades-long search for better treatments for a debilitating liver disorder is finally coming to fruition. Later this year the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve a new pill that can cure hepatitis Ca chronic infection that afflicts about 170 million people worldwide and annually kills 350,000 people, including 15,000 in the U.S.faster and with fewer side effects than current remedies.

The breakthrough treatment comes, however, at a price that may place it out of reach for all but the wealthiest or best-insured patients. It will contain two drugs, one of which is already available at $1,000 per dose, or $84,000 for a complete 12-week course. The dual-drug combination will likely cost even more, which has prompted outrage from physicians and patient advocates alike, as well as plans from insurers to ration the combination when it becomes commercially available.

Over the coming months, physicians, patients, economists and insurance companies will no doubt hotly debate whether the treatment is worth the full asking price. There is little doubt, however, that the medication’s effectiveness is unprecedented and that its development is a significant achievement. A closer look at the complex chemical problems that needed to be solved to develop the cure shows why.

doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0914-32

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What Are The Names Of The Medications For Treating Hepatitis C

Since 2014, multiple different antiviral treatments for hepatitis C have been developed. With the many options now available, often there is more than one good choice for a patient. Some of the treatments are recommended as first-line options, some are second-line options, and others are used less commonly in light of all the available choices.

• Elbasvir/Grazoprevir

Second line hepatitis C medications:

• Sofosbuvir/Velpatasvir/Voxelaprevir

Can Hcv Treatment Cure The Joint Pain

According to the American College of Rheumatology, 97% of people that take direct-acting antivirals for HCV fully recover from the virus. In many cases, treating the infection improves or completely cures any joint pain.

For this reason, it is important to seek testing and treatment as soon as possible to prevent any long-lasting damage to the joints. In the meantime, joint and liver specialists should work together to help manage a persons joint pain in a safe and effective way, as certain arthritis drugs may not be suitable for those with HCV.

For example, several RA drugs can damage the liver. If a person already has some liver damage due to advanced HCV, these drugs will not be suitable for them. Anti-tumor necrosis factor drugs appear to be safe for use in people with HCV, and researchers are testing more.

Anyone who suspects they may have HCV should speak with a doctor as soon as they can. This may be because they have new or unexplained symptoms, because they have several risk factors for contracting HCV, or both.

Tell a doctor about any:

• joint pain or stiffness
• tiredness that is causing difficulty with daily activities
• low-grade fever

These symptoms do not necessarily mean a person has HCV, but a doctor can investigate the cause and find out.

It is also important to tell a doctor about any risk factors that make contracting HCV more likely. These include:

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Can I Drink Alcohol If I Have Hepatitis C

The combination of any cause of hepatitis, such as alcohol on top of HCV, adds to and accelerates liver damage. Both hepatitis B and C can cause chronic hepatitis and progression to cirrhosis and liver cancer, although the disease is much more likely to become chronic in the U.S. Therefore, people with chronic HCV should not drink alcohol and should talk to a doctor about vaccines for other hepatitis viruses.

How Long Does It Take To Cure Hepatitis C

Depending on the drug combination, the specific genotype of hepatitis C that is to be treated, any prior treatment, and whether the person has cirrhosis, the duration of medical therapy may be as few as 8 weeks, or up to 24 weeks. Most regimens are for 12 consecutive weeks. This is much shorter than the interferon-based treatments years ago that lasted up to 48 weeks. Generally, a person is not considered “cured” until the “RNA viral load” is undetectable for 24 weeks after therapy is stopped. This is called “sustained virologic response” or SVR.

The presence of cirrhosis or liver fibrosis is determined by liver biopsy, noninvasive fibrosis scans, or formulas that estimate liver fibrosis based on blood tests, such as AST-to-platelet Ratio Index or Fibrosis-4 Index.3

A very important aspect of treatment is the elimination of all alcohol consumption. Alcohol adds fuel to the fire when it comes to chronic hepatitis. Drinking alcohol greatly worsens liver fibrosis and speeds progression to cirrhosis, and there is no “safe” amount to drink for someone with chronic hepatitis. Drinking alcohol also makes it harder for the medications to be effective and may interfere with proper dosing.

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