New treatment regimen for hepatitis C in transplant patients produces promising results

The investigational three-drug regimen, which produced hepatitis C cure rates of 97 percent, is an oral interferon-free therapy. Previously, the typical treatment for hepatitis C after a liver transplant was an interferon-based therapy, usually given for 48 weeks. It had a much lower response rate, had a risk of organ rejection and was poorly tolerated because of the immunosuppressants required to prevent rejection. The new oral regimen -- ABT-450, ombitasvir and dasabuvir (with or without ribavirin) -- produces significantly fewer side effects and is prescribed for 24 weeks.

New treatment regimen for hepatitis C in transplant patients produces promising results