Comparison of Sofosbuvir Plus Ribavirin Treatment with Pegylated Interferon Plus Ribavirin Treatment for Chronic Hepatitis C Genotype 2

Abstract

Background: Sofosbuvir plus ribavirin (RBV) therapy showed higher sustained virological response at 12 weeks after treatment (SVR12) than pegylated interferon (peg-IFN) plus RBV; however, liver function, fibrosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma markers have not been assessed so far. Summary: Patients (n = 21) receiving Sofosbuvir plus RBV and those (n = 24) receiving peg-IFN plus RBV were enrolled in this study. Changes in alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and α-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, platelet (PLT) counts, FIB-4, and aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) in both groups were assessed in patients achieving SVR12. Also, fibrosis regression was assessed using pathophysiological biomarkers, such as hyaluronic acid, bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP-7), and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in the Sofosbuvir plus RBV group. In both groups, while the reduction in ALT levels was significant that of AFP was not. Compared with the baseline, although serum PLT count at the end of treatment (EOT) was significantly higher in the Sofosbuvir plus RBV group, it was significantly lower in the peg-IFN plus RBV group. Although a significant decline in fibrosis markers such as FIB-4 and APRI was observed between the baseline and at EOT in the Sofosbuvir plus RBV group, no significant change of these markers was observed in the peg-IFN plus RBV group. Moreover, BMP-7 and CTGF were significantly lower at EOT than the baseline in the Sofosbuvir plus RBV group. Key Message: The treatment with Sofosbuvir plus RBV results in not only a higher SVR, but also improves the liver function and the degree of fibrosis.

Impact of different anti-HCV regimens on platelet count during treatment in Egyptian patients

“…The drop in the mean platelet count was modest as illustrated in Table 4 and Fig. 1; in all groups, according to the mean platelet count in the 2nd and 4th weeks and end of treatment, the reported thrombocytopenia is grade 1 (75,000 to 150,000/mm 3 ) as defined by CTCAE v3.0 [7].…”

“…All the three arms were associated with SVR above 95% at week 12 with no statistical difference in between. There are data that support better SVR on SOF/REB [7,10]. Others proved less efficacy for SOF/REB vs other different combinations of DAAs or even IFN-based therapies [11][12][13].…”

Profiling the physiological pitfalls of anti‐hepatitis C direct‐acting agents in budding yeast

“…DAAs display high performance and satisfactory safety profile in patients since their introduction into drug markets for the control of Hepatitis C. DAAs have dramatically changed the HCV treatment landscape, with elevated sustained virologic response (SVR), potential benefits in CHC treatment and improved compliance (Asselah, 2014; Virlogeux et al ., 2016; Shiha et al ., 2018; Heffernan et al ., 2019). DAAs‐based therapy of HCV infections has achieved high virologic cure rates (>90%) superior to the interferon‐based therapy [interferon (INF) plus ribavirin (RBV)], with a low SVR not exceeding 50% (Seo et al ., 2017). Common side effects of DAAs are fatigue, nausea, dizziness and anaemia.…”