For the Treatment of Hepatitis C Virus, the Majority of Surveyed U.S. Physicians Who Prescribe Vertex’s Incivek More Often Than Merck/Roche’s Victrelis Perceive Incivek as Offering a Short, Simple and Highly Efficacious Treatment Option

5th of April 2012 09:00 EST

Decision Resources, one of the world’s leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, for the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV), the majority of surveyed U.S. physicians who prescribe Vertex’s protease inhibitor Incivek more often than Merck/Roche’s protease inhibitor Victrelis perceive Incivek as offering a short, simple treatment duration and superior efficacy. Similarly, surveyed managed care organizations’ (MCOs) pharmacy directors indicate that Incivek’s efficacy is the key driver of formulary inclusion. Physicians’ perception for sustained virologic response (SVR) as a key driver of prescribing for Incivek may suggest that emerging therapies with a higher SVR rate are likely to take patient share from Incivek unless they fall significantly short on other attributes such as safety or convenience.

The new U.S. Physician & Payer Forum report entitled A New Era in the Treatment of Hepatitis C Virus: What Market Access Hurdles Are U.S. Payers Erecting and How Are Physicians Responding? also finds that more surveyed physicians report that their HCV patients request treatment with Incivek over Victrelis. Although most surveyed physicians report that their HCV patients have not requested treatment with a specific protease inhibitor, requests for Incivek are more common than requests for Victrelis among physicians whose patients request a specific protease inhibitor.

“The greater interest among patients for Incivek suggests that information on its superior efficacy and/or dosing profile is well-known to the patient community and highlights the significant interest in new and emerging therapies for HCV,” said Decision Resources Analyst Seamus Levine-Wilkinson, Ph.D.

The report also finds that the availability of Incivek and Victrelis has increased the treatment initiation rate as nearly 80 percent of surveyed physicians indicate that they are treating more HCV patients since the launch of Incivek and Victrelis. Additionally, the pool of drug-treated HCV patients could continue to grow with the expected launch of new interferon-free therapies.

According to surveyed MCO pharmacy directors, efficacy is the key driver of Incivek’s formulary placement. The high efficacy of Incivek-based triple therapy is the most important driver of formulary inclusion and favorable tier placement of Incivek in commercial health plans. This support for Incivek’s efficacy likely influences pharmacy directors’ decisions to reimburse Incivek on the same tier as Victrelis, despite its higher cost. Efficacy is also the most important driver of formulary placement for Victrelis. The efficacy of Victrelis-based triple therapy is the most important driver of formulary inclusion and tier placement in commercial plans, although its influence is lower than for Incivek-based therapy.

About Decision Resources

Decision Resources (www.decisionresources.com) is a world leader in market research publications, advisory services and consulting designed to help clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets. Decision Resources is a Decision Resources Group company.

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Decision Resources Group is a cohesive portfolio of companies that offers best-in-class, high-value information and insights on important sectors of the healthcare industry. Clients rely on this analysis and data to make informed decisions. Please visit Decision Resources Group at www.DecisionResourcesGroup.com.

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Two new drugs curing Hepatitis C

Friday, April 06, 2012
Christi Myers

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The cure rates for Hepatitis C have been dismal until two new drugs came out last year. Now the cure rates are up to 75 percent.

Hepatitis C is a virus that destroys the liver and rarely has symptoms. Now doctors say baby boomers should get tested for the virus, because the sooner someone with Hep C gets the new treatment, the more likely they are to be cured. 

Katie Anders doesn't want to die. But the Hepatitis C virus has been silently destroying her liver. Now at 27, she is in early stages of cirrhosis.

"I could end up with a liver transplant or liver cancer, and I've got two little kids I want to watch grow up," Anders said.

Chances are, she'll be there for her young children because a new drug that is clearing the tough Hepatitis C virus out of her body. It's called Victrelis. Victrelis and another new drug, Incivek, are turning Hep C's dismal survival rates around.

"In the early 1990s, we had a six percent cure rate. Now we're talking 75-77 percent cure rate," said Dr. Howard Monsour, who conducted a clinical trial on Victrelis at Methodist Hospital.
It's even helping people for whom nothing has worked.

"The ones who couldn't really get rid of the virus, you're seeing cure rates in the mid to upper 50 percentile range," Monsour said.

Hepatitis C causes cirrhosis of the liver and it's the biggest cause of liver transplants, so doctors say stopping Hepatitis C will reduce the need for transplants and reduce liver cancer rates as well.

Even so, the cure isn't easy. Anders has to take the new medicine for more than six months. She also takes a daily interferon shot and Ribavirun.

Dr. Monsour says the sooner you're treated, the better; and he says anyone over 40 should get a blood test to check for Hepatitis C.

The medicines cost about $30,000. But Dr. Monsour says insurance covers it and he says there are programs that cover it for people who don't have insurance.

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Restrictive donation rules don’t help anyone

A.J. Archer

By A.J. ARCHER on April 7, 2012

Many students attended the “Marrow-thon” for Kajal Patel, a student in the sixth grade at Athens Academy who was in need of a bone marrow transplant.

They had swab samples taken to see if they could be her one-in-20,000 match.

I, however, did not — what’s more, I could not. Certain restrictions on the donation process put limits on who can donate.

Being a gay male, I’ve known that I’m ineligible to give blood, but I only just discovered I’m barred from the bone marrow registry.

In 1985, when the Food and Drug Administration placed a restriction on gay men donating blood, HIV/AIDS was seen as a gay disease.

But now that HIV/AIDS has seen a rise in prominence in the heterosexual community as well, why do these antiquated restrictions still exist?

This girl needed a bone marrow transplant to save her life — it was the embodiment of a life-or-death situation.

Moreover, her odds were steep — thankfully, the Marrow-thon did ultimately find a match. But in a time of dire need of help such as this, and in others, shouldn’t we be expending all of our resources, regardless of sexual history?

With today’s technology, HIV testing can be completed in a matter of minutes and, due to that advancement, all donated blood and marrow is tested before it is placed aside for possible transfusions or transplants.

Given these circumstances, I find it hard to explain why I, with good blood and good intentions, couldn’t try to be Kajal’s one in 20,000.

When the stakes are this high, we should be taking samples from absolutely anyone who’s willing to give them.

But before that can happen, we need to see a dramatic change in the restrictions placed on donation.

Though the donation policy has undergone some revision, some things about it still don’t quite make sense to me.

Under the revision, men who have previously been sexually active with other men but who have not been in sexual contact with another man in the past five years can donate blood.

But if we’re trying to avoid receiving blood that is marred with an incurable disease, what difference does five years make? That’s something that stays with you for life.

The argument, then, becomes more discriminatory than precautionary — there is no gay man who practices safe sex and is more high-risk than a straight man who sleeps around without protection.

So instead of revising the restrictions, I say we lift them — because all of us are susceptible.

— AJ Archer is a sophomore from McDonough majoring in journalism and romance languages

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EpiCept's compound EP1013 identifies as new drug candidate to treat late-stage viral hepatitis

Tarrytown, New York
Saturday, April 07, 2012, 16:00 Hrs [IST]

EpiCept Corporation, a company focused on the development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of pain and cancer, has announced that new preclinical research for its apoptosis inhibitor drug candidate EP1013 (now renamed F573) has concluded that F573 is a new therapeutic drug candidate for the treatment of late-stage viral infection-induced hepatitis.

The data were published in the Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin (2102 Volume 28 (1):136-139). F573 was discovered by EpiCept and licensed to GNI Group Ltd. in 2008 for clinical development in Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

F573 delivered intravenously demonstrated a therapeutic effect in a study involving 60 mice with acute liver injury, including a reduction in TNF-a and cell apoptosis. GNI Group Ltd. also noted that F573 reduced mice mortality caused by acute liver injury and that these animal studies provide important proof and direction for future human studies.

EpiCept president and CEO Jack Talley commented, "This is the first published evidence of F573's activity in viral hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver caused mainly by three specific viruses (hepatitis A, B and C). According to the C. Everett Koop Institute, 3-5 million Americans are infected with hepatitis C alone, with at least 170 million people infected globally. GNI's continued progress against this disease may enable us to advance the development of the compound in other territories, particularly North America and Europe."

As part of its license agreement with GNI Group Ltd., EpiCept is eligible to receive milestone payments of more than $12 million based on the clinical advancement of F573 in Asia, Australia and New Zealand, as well as royalties on commercial sales. EpiCept retains the commercial rights to F573/EP1013 in all other markets. The next potential milestone payment would occur in conjunction with initiation of a phase I trial in any of the territories outlined in the agreement. In July 2011, Shanghai Genomics, a wholly owned subsidiary of GNI Group Ltd., filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for F573 in China.

F573 is a di-peptide small-molecule compound with a potent inhibitory effect on caspases, a class of enzymes involved in cell death and inflammation. Drug efficacy has been shown in animal models relating to liver failure, brain ischemia and myocardial infarction. GNI Group Ltd. has secured a series of patent rights for F573 in China, Japan other key territories from EpiCept Corporation to develop this drug for liver diseases.

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Liver cancer emerges as fast growing threat in country

HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, April 08, 2012

Liver cancer is emerging as one of the fastest spreading cancers in India. “We get about 10 new liver cancer cases in our hospital every week, and in the past two years, we have seen 360 people suffering from liver cancer,” said Dr SK Sarin, director, ILBS, during a two-day (April 7-8)

international symposium organised by the institute on liver cancer in the Capital.

The good news, however, is that almost 50% see a specialist in a treatable condition as opposed to 10% about two decades ago. “Early detection always helps in better treatment outcome. We urge high-risk category people to get screened regularly, and see a liver specialist if cancer is diagnosed,” said Dr Sarin.

Those having a family history of hepatitis B or C, diabetics and alcoholics fall under the risk category. If your mother is Hepatitis B positive, then you need to be extra careful.

Hepatitis B and C used to be the most common causes for liver disease in India that led to liver cancer later. Since past few years, alcohol has also added to the list. Nearly 1 million people suffer from chronic liver disease because of alcohol.

For diabetics, who are over-weight and consume alcohol, the chances of getting liver cancer increases by eight fold. “Diabetics have two-and-a-half times more chances of developing chronic liver disease,” said Dr Sarin.

Around the world, too, acute liver disease accounts for 40% of deaths from cirrhosis and 30% of the cases of liver cancer.

Advances in medical science have led to new treatment options for liver cancer patients. “Blocking blood supply to the tumour and administering chemotherapy directly to the tumour called trans-arterial chemo embolization; radiation surgery, using a radiation beam to cut the tumour are proving very beneficial,” said Dr KK Madhavan, liver specialist from Singapore.

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LIVER DISEASE IN KASHMIR CHALLENGES & HOPE

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has taken us by storm globally

HEALTH BY PROF M S KHUROO

Liver disease is now established as the fifth most common cause of death after heart disease, stroke, chest infections and cancer. Disturbing is the data that unlike other major causes of mortality, liver disease is increasing over the years rather than declining. For medical fraternity worldwide, there have never been more challenges thrown by liver disease and yet there shall never be more tools/hope available with us to overcome these. Thus liver disease globally is passing through both-despair and hope; an excellent opportunity for many of us to exploit for the better.

Today we have a large pool of chronic carriers of hepatitis viruses across the globe. Estimated numbers of Hepatitis BVirus (HBV)& Hepatitis CVirus (HCV) infected worldwide are staggering -350 million and 500 million respectively. Of the 40 million HIV carriers, 3 million are infected with HBV and 4.5 million with HCV. It is estimated that HBV results in one million deaths worldwide yearly and HCV causes whooping 5 million deaths. End Stage Liver Disease (ESLD) and liver cancer constitute major causes of deaths related to HBV &HCV infections. Universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth in endemic areas has been shown to be highly effective in reducing carrier rates in children as well as the incidence of ESLD and liver cancer. Today 182 countries have now included hepatitis B vaccination in national immunization program and we must follow this in our EPI program aggressively to change the epidemiology of HBV in our country.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) has turned out to be the most enigmatic human agent since we discovered the agent in 1980. HEV causes large-scale waterborne epidemics in developing countries involving hundreds and thousands of adult population. Around half to two-thirds of endemic hepatitis in such countries are caused by HEV. HEV has increased incidence and severity in pregnant women and is the commonest cause of acute liver failure in our society. In recent years, hepatitis E is recognized as a clinical problem in industrialized countries. HEV agent has entered in to food borne chain and is spread by consuming raw or undercooked pig livers available in super-markets in such countries. Recently we calculated HEV infections load globally. In 2005 an estimated 20 million incident HEV infections had occurred resulting in 3.3 million symptomatic cases, 70,000 deaths and 3000 stillbirths. In India alone, over 2.2 million cases of hepatitis E are thought to occur annually. Because of the impact of this infection globally it is imperative that measures be taken to control this python. Clean drinking water and safe sewage disposal are the corner stones of control, however, it may take more than hundred years before we get to drink a glass of clean portable water in India. Two HEV candidate vaccines have successfully completed phase 3 trials and ready for the prime time. As of today, HEV are not commercially available.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has taken us by storm globally. Kashmir is in the middle of an epidemic of metabolic syndrome and NAFLD. NAFLD is a potentially progressive liver disease and shall pose serious health problem to our community in near future. What could be the possible reasons for introduction of metabolic syndrome and NAFLD in our community of late? For sure the focus has to be our changing sedentary life style and changing food habits. You might be shocked to know that a plate of wazwan shared by 4 persons served 40,000 kilo-calories and indulgence in this delicacy shall throw any body’s metabolic system in to disarray and load liver with fat, similar to what binge drinking can do in the West. So if we need to fight this metabolic syndrome and liver disease caused by NAFLD, we need to be on roads and gyms rather than driving luxurious cars, go back to our delicious Haak (Cabbage) and rice rather than delicacy of Wazwan and maintain a body mass index at least under 25.

In this despair and hope for challenges posed by liver disease, where does liver transplantation stand? Should we talk about this esoteric advanced costly procedure once our community is infested with parasites, infections, poor portable water, bad sewage disposal and poor life style practices. My answer is yes and I shall dilate upon this to support this. It is worth mentioning that patients with ESLD and acute liver failure do not have the luxury of liver dialysis as those with renal failure patients have and liver transplant is the only hope for millions of such patients as of today. In spite of the shortage of organs and long waiting list of patients on cadaveric program Liver transplant has substantially changed management of such patients. Living Donor Liver Transplant has removed many bottlenecks and strengthened such programs in the West.

Today function has been organized to focus on awareness of liver transplant in our community. For this we have invited senior medical faculty and important members of civil society to compliment the visiting team. We have supported young physicians from various disciplines to attend this function and interact with the visiting team. It is our wish that these young minds develop interest in various aspects of liver transplant may be transplant hepatology, surgery, pathology, radiology and so on.

This interest and training shall help patients with liver diseases in Kashmir to get correct advice on transplant patients and also help those transplanted and on follow up in J&K. In future this may strengthen the ties with other transplant centers to develop a satellite liver transplant program in the State in coming years.

(Author is Ex-Director SKIMS Srinagar; Ex-Head Gastro & Liver Transplantation Program KFSH Riyadh; Director Digestive Disease Center Dr Khuroo’s Medical Clinic Srinagar Kashmir India)

Lastupdate on : Sat, 7 Apr 2012 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 7 Apr 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 8 Apr 2012 00:00:00 IST

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STEM-CELL JAB MAY SAVE LIVER VICTIMS

Professor Anil Dhawan, who is leading the trial at London’s King’s College Hospital

Sunday April 8,2012

By Lucy Johnston

AS BRITAIN faces an epidemic of liver disease a medical breakthrough is offering new hope to those awaiting transplants.

There is an acute shortage of donor organs but doctors believe they can repair damaged livers by injecting specially treated cells into them.

Trials of the new stem-cell treatment are to begin on ­children with rare and deadly liver conditions. If they are successful, patients with livers damaged by alcohol, obesity or illness could also be saved.

Large numbers of liver patients die each year while waiting for a transplant. Some don’t even make the transplant list due to organ shortages.

The death toll due to liver disease has risen by a quarter in the last decade. Just over 11,500 men and women now die of liver disease every year, up from 9,200 in 2001.

It is estimated just under 80 per cent of these deaths are caused by alcohol, 10 to 15 per cent by obesity and the remainder by hepatitis or inherited conditions. The most recent figures show that about 150 of 700 organs transplanted each year go to recovering alcoholics.

“We have many very sick children and babies who need transplants” Professor Anil Dhawan

Professor Anil Dhawan who is leading the trial at London’s King’s College Hospital, described the use of stem cells to treat liver disease as an “exciting breakthrough”.

He said: “We have many very sick children and babies who need transplants. If we can cure them without a transplant it will be a ­fantastic development.”

Professor Etienne Sokal, who developed the technique at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, said: “Some patients with liver disease are unable to produce appropriate stem cells to repair the liver. The cells we infuse into the liver supply the liver with new stem cells, which are able to correct the missing functions.”

The stem cells, taken from the organs of dead donors are better tolerated than a transplant and require fewer drugs to reduce the risks of the body rejecting them.

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EASL 2012: Abbott to present phase II results from multiple interferon-free studies of combo regimens at ILC 2012 meeting

Abbott Park, Illinois
Saturday, April 07, 2012, 10:00 Hrs [IST]

Abbott will present clinical trial results from two different interferon-free, phase II studies for the treatment of hepatitis C (HCV) at the International Liver Congress 2012 (ILC 2012), the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), from April 18-22 in Barcelona, Spain.

In the study known as "Co-Pilot," different doses of ABT-450/r, plus ABT-333 and ribavirin administered for 12 weeks showed sustained virological response at 12 weeks post treatment (SVR12) in 95 per cent and 93 per cent of treatment-naïve genotype 1 (GT1) patients. In these patients, response was independent of HCV subtype, host IL28B genotype or dose of ABT-450/r. In addition, SVR12 was achieved in 47 per cent of patients who were previous non-responders to past HCV treatment.

In a separate study, known as "Pilot," 91 per cent of genotype 1 infected, treatment-naïve patients taking ABT-450/r and ABT-072 combined with ribavirin administered for 12 weeks, achieved sustained viral response at 24 weeks (SVR24).

“We are extremely encouraged to see this level of sustained response with only 12 weeks of therapy in patients who were new to treatment, and to see a response in patients who had failed past treatment because options to cure this population are limited,” said Fred Poordad, MD, chief of hepatology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, and the lead investigator for Co-Pilot and an investigator for Pilot. “These data suggest that an interferon-free, all-oral regimen of direct-acting antiviral medications could be an important new treatment option for HCV, and we look forward to presenting additional data at the meeting.”

“At this meeting, Abbott will present some of the first sustained viral response data for short course, interferon-free regimens for the treatment of HCV. The data suggest that with a 12-week regimen containing just two of our direct-acting antiviral medicines, and no peginterferon, we can achieve high cure rates in treatment-naïve, genotype 1 patients,” said Scott Brun, MD, divisional vice president, Infectious Disease Development, Abbott. “Abbott's HCV pipeline includes several compounds in different drug classes and we have the flexibility to study a variety of multi-drug regimens for HCV, with a focus on interferon-free treatments. Abbott is committed to exploring a wide variety of options in our portfolio with the goal of developing optimized regimens to help patients.”

Current treatments for HCV remain interferon-based and a significant number of HCV patients are unable or unwilling to take interferon due to contraindications and/or side effects. Specifically targeted antiviral therapies for HCV, such as protease inhibitors and non-nucleoside polymerase inhibitors, may have the potential to increase the proportion of patients in whom the virus can be eradicated.

These two studies represent an important part of Abbott’s broader HCV development programme. Larger phase II clinical trials are ongoing, and Abbott expects to present additional data later this year. In addition to its partnership with Enanta Pharmaceuticals on ABT-450 and protease inhibitors, Abbott has internal programs focused on additional viral targets. Abbott currently has investigational medicines with three different mechanisms of action in its ongoing clinical trials, including protease, polymerase and NS5A inhibitors. Abbott is well-positioned to explore combinations of these compounds, a strategy with the potential to markedly transform current treatment practices by shortening therapy duration, improving tolerability and increasing cure rates.

Fred Poordad, at Study M12-746 (Co-Pilot) said “12-Week Interferon-Free Regimen of ABT-450/r+ABT-333+Ribavirin Achieved SVR12 in More Than 90% of Treatment-Naïve HCV Genotype-1-Infected Subjects and 47% of Previous Non-Responders.”

The objectives of this phase II study were to assess safety and tolerability of 12-week, interferon-free regimens in HCV GT1 patients who were either treatment-naïve or previous non-responders. The trial had three arms with three primary endpoints – rapid virological response (RVR) at week 4 and SVR at weeks 4 and 12.

Enrollment was open to GT1-infected patients regardless of IL28B host genotype and ribavirin dosing was weight-based. 95 per cent (18 of 19) of treatment-naïve patients infected with HCV GT1 (17 GT 1a, 2 GT 1b) achieved SVR12 with ABT-450/r 250/100 mg dosed once daily (QD) + ABT-333 400 mg dosed twice daily (BID) + ribavirin (Arm 1). 93 per cent (13 of 14) of treatment-naïve patients infected with HCV GT1 (11 GT 1a, 3 GT 1b) achieved SVR12 with ABT-450/r 150/100 mg QD + ABT-333 400 mg BID + ribavirin (Arm 2).

One patient in Arm 1 discontinued due to asymptomatic isolated ALT/AST elevations at week 2. One patient in Arm 2 discontinued due to noncompliance in week 1. All remaining patients in Arms 1 and 2 completed treatment and achieved SVR12. In Arm 3, six patients experienced viral breakthrough while on treatment and three patients relapsed after treatment stopped.

In the trial the most common adverse events were fatigue (42 percent), nausea (22 percent) and headache (20 percent).

Eric Lawitz, at Study M12-267 (Pilot), “A 12-Week Interferon-Free Regimen of ABT-450/r, ABT-072, and Ribavirin was Well Tolerated and Achieved Sustained Virologic Response in 91% Treatment-Naïve HCV IL28B-CC Genotype-1-Infected Subjects.”

The objectives of the 12-week, phase II study were to assess the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and antiviral activity of ABT-450/r 150/100 mg QD and ABT-072 400 mg QD + ribavirin administered for 12 weeks. The study was conducted in 11 treatment-naïve adults with host IL28B "CC" genotype from multiple ethnic backgrounds with non-cirrhotic HCV GT1 (8 GT 1a, 3 GT 1b). Ribavirin 1,000-1,200 mg/day was weight-based and dosed twice daily.

The primary endpoint was percentage of patients with HCV RNA <25 IU/mL from week 4 through 12. Other trial endpoints include early virologic response, RVR and SVR through 24 weeks. 100 per cent of patients maintained HCV RNA levels <25 IU/mL from weeks 4 through 12 of treatment, and all had undetectable HCV RNA from week 5 to the end of treatment. 91 percent of patients (10 of 11) achieved SVR24.

In the trial, the most common adverse events reported were headache, fatigue, nausea and dry skin. There were no premature discontinuations.

ABT-450 is being developed with low dose ritonavir (ABT-450/r), which enhances the pharmacokinetic properties of ABT-450. The use of ritonavir 100 mg with ABT-450 for the treatment of HCV is investigational.

Hepatitis C is a liver disease affecting as many as 170 million people worldwide. The virus is primarily spread through direct contact with the blood of an infected person.HCV increases a person's risk of developing chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, liver cancer and death, and liver disease associated with HCV infection is growing rapidly.

Ritonavir is in a class of medicines called the HIV protease inhibitors. Ritonavir is used in combination with other anti-HIV medicines to treat people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Ritonavir is for adults and for children greater than 1 month in age and older.

Ritonavir does not cure HIV infection or AIDS and does not reduce the risk of passing HIV to others. People taking ritonavir may still get opportunistic infections or other conditions that happen with HIV infection. Some of these conditions are pneumonia, herpes virus infections, and Mycobacterium aviumcomplex (MAC) infections.

Patients should not take ritonavir with certain medicines, as these can cause serious or life-threatening problems such as irregular heartbeat, breathing difficulties, or excessive sleepiness. Patients should not take ritonavir if they have had a serious allergic reaction to any of its ingredients. Some patients taking ritonavir may develop liver and pancreas problems, which can cause death. Patients may develop large increases in triglycerides and cholesterol, diabetes, high blood sugar, changes in body fat, increased bleeding in people with hemophilia, allergic reactions, and/or changes in heart rhythm. Patients may develop signs and symptoms of infections that they already have after starting anti-HIV medicines.

Abbott is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics.

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Also See:

1. Abbott's hepatitis C combinations promising in phase II
2. In hepatitis C: Curing the incurable
3. EASL 2012: Enanta Announces Positive Phase 2 Results From Interferon-Free Combination Studies with ABT-450 for Hepatitis C Treatment to be Presented at EASL
4. EASL 2012: Abbott hepatitis drug 93% effective in small study
5. EASL 2012: Abbott to Present Positive Phase 2 Results from Multiple Interferon-Free Studies of Combination Regimens for the Treatment of Hepatitis C
6. EASL: Abbott and Enanta Present Positive 12-Week Results and 3-Day Resistance Data From Phase 2 Study of ABT-450/r for Treatment of Hepatitis C