Azathioprine (AZA), 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP), and thioguanine (TG) are thiopurine drugs. These agents are indicated for the treatment of various diseases including hematologic malignancies, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), rheumatoid arthritis, and as immunosuppressants in solid organ transplants. Thiopurine drugs are metabolized, in part, by thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT). TPMT displays genetic polymorphism resulting in null or decreased enzyme activity. At least 20 polymorphisms have been identified, of which, TPMT *2, *3A, *3B, *3C, and *4 are the most commonly studied. These polymorphisms have been associated with increased myelosuppression risk. TPMT genotyping may be useful to predict this risk.
Etanercept+MTX was a cost-effective treatment strategy in the base-case scenario; however, the model was sensitive to parameter uncertainties and ACR response criteria. Although Bayesian methods were used to determine transition probabilities, future studies will need to focus on head-to-head comparisons of multiple TNF-α inhibitors to provide valid comparisons.
The authors have reported a number of corrections to their analysis following the Letter to the Editor by Diamantopoulos et al. [1] These corrections have not affected the conclusions of the article but have resulted in a number of changes to the cost and utility results presented throughout the text, figures and tables. In addition, a wider range of utility values were tested in the one-way sensitivity analyses as the corrections resulted in a wider variance than previously reported. Please refer to Bounthavong et al.'s reply [2] to Diamantopoulos et al. for a more comprehensive explanation of these errors and to the online corrected version for correct cost and utility results.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a bloodborne infection that is one of the leading causes of liver disease. If left untreated, HCV can lead to cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and death. The current standard of care for HCV is a combination of pegylated-interferon (peg-IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) in which the goal of treatment is to decrease complications and death due to HCV. HCV displays genetic polymorphism, where patients with HCV genotype 1 may have higher viral replication rates and are less likely to respond to treatment. These patients require a longer duration of treatment and a higher RBV dose. The interleukin (IL) 28B genotype test is associated with a sustained virologic response (SVR), defined as an undetectable HCV ribonucleic acid (RNA) upon completion of treatment and 24 weeks thereafter.
Clinical use of denosumab remains limited and its place in therapy will continue to be defined. Clinical questions, such as the optimal duration of therapy, remain unanswered and need to be addressed.
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