U.S. liver cancer deaths more common with less education
‘Liver cancer is the most rapidly rising cause of U.S. cancer deaths, and most of those dying from this disease are people with less education, a new study suggests. During the study – from 2000 to 2015 – liver cancer death rates nationwide rose from 7.5 to 11.2 fatalities for every 100,000 men ages 25 to 74 and from 2.8 to 3.8 fatalities for every 100,000 women in this age range, researchers note in the journal Cancer.’

Intensive Models of Hepatitis C Care for People Who Inject Drugs Receiving Opioid Agonist Therapy: A Randomized Controlled Trial
‘Many people who inject drugs (PWID) are denied treatment for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, even if they are receiving opioid agonist therapy (OAT). Research suggests that HCV in PWID may be treated effectively, but optimal models of care for promoting adherence and sustained virologic response (SVR) have not been evaluated in the direct-acting antiviral (DAA) era.’

Glecaprevir/pibrentasvir safe, effective in cirrhotic patients with HCV
‘For the treatment of chronic hepatitis C genotype 1 through 6 infections, glecaprevir and pibrentasvir demonstrated safety and efficacy in patients with compensated liver disease, including those with chronic kidney disease stage 4 or 5, according to results pooled from nine phase 2 and 3 trials.’

Optimal Limit of Detection for a Point-of-Care HCV Viremia Test
‘Increasing the level of detection of circulating hepatitis C virus (HCV) in diagnostic testing would maintain good test accuracy and would likely allow for the development of more affordable portable tests for use in low- and middle-income countries, according to a study published in the Journal of Hepatology.’

Gene Predicts Recovery from Decompensated HCV Cirrhosis
‘A gene linked to risk for steatosis predicted likelihood of patients with sustained virologic response (SVR) after direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment recovering from decompensated hepatitis C cirrhosis. “Patients with decompensated cirrhosis experience a variety of outcomes,” observed Winston Dunn, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, MO, and colleagues, “and the prognostic factors for clinical recovery from decompensated cirrhosis after SVR remain unknown.”

The contribution of injection drug use to hepatitis C virus transmission globally, regionally, and at country level: a modelling study
‘WHO aims to eliminate the hepatitis C virus (HCV) as a public health threat by 2030. Injection drug use is an important risk factor for HCV transmission, but its contribution to country-level and global epidemics is unknown. We estimated the contribution of injection drug use to risk for HCV epidemics globally, regionally, and at country level.’

HCV Increases Mortality in Dialysis Patients
‘Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was found to be an independent and significant risk factor for death in patients with chronic kidney disease on maintenance dialysis, in a new systematic review and meta-analysis of studies involving over a half-million patients.

NAFLD Prevalence Soars in HIV+ Medicare Patients
‘VIENNA — Rates of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among Medicare patients living with HIV doubled in ten years, while rates of viral hepatitis among these patients declined, a researcher said here.

Hep C Rise Seen Among HIV-Negative Gay, Bi Men
‘Data emerging from the US and Europe shows that more HIV-negative gay and bisexual men are contracting hepatitis C than in the past, and New York-based health experts say PrEP’s role in preventing the spread of HIV could be altering what had been a longstanding link between the two infections.’

Short and sporadic injecting cessation episodes as predictors of incident hepatitis C virus infection: Findings from a cohort study of people who inject drugs in Montréal, Canada
‘In Montréal, Canada, researchers performed this cohort study investigating the predictive value of injecting cessation episodes over one- to three-months for acquiring hepatitis C virus (HCV). Between March 2011 and June 2016, enrollment of 372 HCV-uninfected (HCV RNA negative, HCV antibody positive or negative) people who inject drugs (mean age 39, 82% male, 45% HCV antibody positive) was done.’