Dennis BB, Naji L, Jajarmi Y, Ahmed A, Kim D. New hope for hepatitis C virus: Summary of global epidemiologic changes and novel innovations over 20 years. World J Gastroenterol 2021; 27(29): 4818-4830 [PMID: 34447228 DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v27.i29.4818]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Donghee Kim, MD, PhD, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Stanford University School of Medicine, 300 Pasteur Drive, Stanford, CA 94304, United States. dhkimmd@stanford.edu
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastroenterol. Aug 7, 2021; 27(29): 4818-4830 Published online Aug 7, 2021. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v27.i29.4818
New hope for hepatitis C virus: Summary of global epidemiologic changes and novel innovations over 20 years
Brittany B Dennis, Leen Naji, Yasmin Jajarmi, Aijaz Ahmed, Donghee Kim
Brittany B Dennis, Yasmin Jajarmi, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton L8S 4L8, ON, Canada
Brittany B Dennis, Aijaz Ahmed, Donghee Kim, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94304, United States
Leen Naji, Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton L8P 1H6, ON, Canada
Leen Naji, Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton L8S 4K1, ON, Canada
Author contributions: Dennis BB and Naji L made the equal contribution; as lead authors, Dennis BB and Naji L were responsible for the literature review, interpretation, and preparation of manuscript; Dennis BB, Naji L, Jajarmi Y, Kim D and Ahmed A led the development of the project, contributed to the interpreting the data and writing the manuscript; Kim D had full access to data from this investigation and is accountable for the reliability of the data presented and the accuracy of all literature summarized.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors have no conflict of interest to declare. We report no competing interests for this investigation.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Donghee Kim, MD, PhD, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Stanford University School of Medicine, 300 Pasteur Drive, Stanford, CA 94304, United States. dhkimmd@stanford.edu
Received: January 28, 2021 Peer-review started: January 28, 2021 First decision: March 6, 2021 Revised: March 20, 2021 Accepted: July 13, 2021 Article in press: July 13, 2021 Published online: August 7, 2021 Processing time: 187 Days and 8.5 Hours
Abstract
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global health concern associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Before the approval of second-generation direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs), interferon therapy and liver transplantation constituted the mainstay of treatment. The introduction of well-tolerated oral DAAs in late 2013 has revolutionized HCV management with over 95% cure rates. The predominance of HCV-related liver transplantations has declined following the widespread approval of DAAs. Despite the unparallel efficacy observed among these novel therapies, pharmaceutical costs continue to limit equitable access to healthcare and likely contribute to the differential HCV infection rates observed globally. To reduce the burden of disease worldwide, essential agenda items for all countries must include the prioritization of integrated care models and access to DAAs therapies. Through transparent negotiations with the pharmaceutical industry, the consideration for compassionate release of medications to promote equitable division of care is paramount. Here we provide a literature review of HCV, changes in epidemiologic trends, access issues for current therapies, and global inequities in disease burden.
Core Tip: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global health concern associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The introduction of well-tolerated oral direct-acting antiviral agents in late 2013 has revolutionized HCV management with over 90% cure rates. Equitable access to these agents remains an important issue, given that countries with the greatest burden of disease have the least access to curative therapies. Here we provide a literature review of HCV, changes in epidemiologic trends, current therapies, and highlight inequities in the burden of disease and access to treatment.
