CROI 2014: Ken Sherman
Hepatitis specialist Ken Sherman provides a brief background on Hepatitis and groundbreaking developments in the treatment of Hepatitis C being made possible by recently approved therapeutic drug Olysio (simeprevir) and potential combination therapies with peginterferon and ribavirin, along with a prediction for the eventual phasing out of peginterferon and dramatic changes in the standard of care for Hepatitis treatment by the end of 2014.
Notable questions addressed include: When to consider switching your present drug regimens? When the new Hepatitis armamentarium will be solidly in place? Who should be getting tested for Hepatitis and how often? What will the state of the resistance profile look like once we start treating many new individuals for Hepatitis C?
Simply curing the virus does not mitigate the risk of primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma) and other important side effects from liver damage.