Breakthrough Could Lead to Cure for Chronic Liver DiseaseApril 3rd, 2012 by DebbieGScientists have been able to stimulate the liver to produce hepatocytes. Continued research in this area should in turn lead to new drugs to perform this function and therefore, drastically reduce the demand for liver transplants. Does Obama’s Proposal to Cut HIV Programs Mean More Funding for Other Diseases?March 12th, 2012 by Debbie GreenObama’s 2013 budget request proposed a 10.8% cut to direct international aid for HIV programmes under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) which, together with previous cuts, would slice more than US$1 billion from the fund’s 2010 level. http://www.nature.com/news/cuts-hamper-bid-to-tackle-aids-1.10173 Is this good news or bad news? Last fall, HCV-related deaths in the U.S. surpassed HIV/AIDs-related deaths (about 15,000 deaths vs. 13,000). Massive amounts of money poured into AIDs research and international assistance have made a huge impact on the spread and treatment of HIV/AIDs. Deaths from other diseases, such as HCV, have meanwhile continued to surge. Will this budget cut mean a shift in funding in favor of the other diseases? Or will it just mean that less money is available period for disease research and treatment? Progress on Hep C VaccineFebruary 22nd, 2012 by Debbie GreenInterferon Free Hep C Treatment Possible in the Near Future?January 23rd, 2012 by DebbieGCombination of Oral Drugs Suppress Hep C in University of Michigan Study This study was conducted by Dr. Anna Lok, whom The Greenview Hepatitis C Fund supports. “In this pilot study, patients with hepatitis C genotype 1 infection, who had not responded to previous treatment with PEG-interferon alfa and ribavirin, were given a combination of two investigational direct-acting antiviral agents (daclatasvir and asunaprevir) alone, or were given these two antiviral agents along with PEG-interferon alfa-2a and ribavirin.” “Although only four of 11 patients given the two direct-acting antiviral agents only achieved sustained virologic response, this is the first study to show that sustained virologic response can be achieved without the use of interferon or ribavirin.” Read the entire article here: http://www.uofmhealth.org/news/drug-combination-suppresses-hepatitis-c American Liver Foundation Financial Resources GuideJanuary 11th, 2012 by DebbieGHaving trouble with health care costs? Here’s a guide that may help you: http://go.liverfoundation.org/site/DocServer/financial_resources.pdf?docID=5522 Get Free Newsletter on HCV Research and Treatment News UpdatesNovember 16th, 2011 by DebbieGOk. We give up! The news on HCV research is coming out way to fast and furious for us to deal with. Hepatitis Central has a much bigger staff to be able to handle this, so we are directing you to their free newsletter (and website) for any future news on HCV. http://www.hepatitis-central.com/list.html We will be concentrating on fund raising for even more HCV research. If you haven’t visited our website, here is our Mission statement : “Despite the vast number of people with hepatitis C, the seriousness of the disease and the alarming number of deaths, research for a cure or better treatment receives very little funding. The Greenview Foundation’s Hepatitis C Fund exists to raise money for medical research, primarily in the form of seed money for promising research projects that might not otherwise progress far enough to be eligible for large grants. We are particularly interested in these main areas: 1. Non- Interferon based treatment(s) because most treatment side effects stem from this drug 2. Non-invasive diagnostic procedures to assess disease progression because a liver biopsy, the current standard of assessment, is unpleasant, expensive and carries it’s own risks. Patients will avoid having a liver biopsy if at all possible and jeopardize their chances of survival 3. Methods to decrease side effects of available treatments because not only can side effects deter a patient from completing treatment, they can also be serious and permanent.” To date, we have donated $45,000 to the University of Michigan. Partially because of this seed money, an additional $40,000 in grant money was awarded to the University of Michigan HCV research program. We will be donating another $10 -$12,000 yet this year. We’ve also made a $5,000 donation to the University of Miami for HCV research.
The Dragon has not been slayed yet, so we will continue to raise as much money as we can for HCV research. Please support us in our uphill battle! Your comments on how this blog should continue would be appreciated. Good luck to all!
Are Accelerated Approvals of Drugs a Good Thing?November 16th, 2011 by DebbieG“In the past two years, the agency’s(FDA) lower levels of approvals—21 drugs in 2010 and 25 in 2009—caused concern throughout the industry and in Congress. We may feel grateful to FDA, but we also should ask how the agency achieved this high number of approvals. Patients with HCV have Low Levels of Vitamin DNovember 16th, 2011 by DebbieG“Chicago—Retrospective findings presented at the 2011 Digestive Disease Week meeting revealed that 64% of patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have low levels of vitamin D (abstract Su1302). In light of the results, researchers are urging clinicians to monitor vitamin D levels in all patients with chronic viral hepatitis.” Eltrombopag Studied for Improving Platelet Counts for HCV PatientsNovember 16th, 2011 by DebbieGMilk Thistle No Better than Placebo Study ClaimsNovember 16th, 2011 by DebbieG“Although well tolerated,” Fried’s team concluded, “oral silymarin administered at higher-than-customary doses did not significantly alter biochemical markers of disease activity in patients with chronic hepatitis C who had failed prior treatment with interferon-based regimens.” |
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