Hep C treatment with minimal side effects causes death!"
Now thats a good one Hector...:)
Thanks cando!
Yeah I hope our Sofobuvir doesn't blow up on us. I can see the headline now... Hep C treatment with minimal side effects causes death!"
ouch!!!
Now that could ruin my whole day! haha
Hector
Good article, Can-do.
My sentiments exactly.
Lets just hope when we see large trials with these drugs instead of just a handful of people, that the same thing that happened with the other two drugs don't repeat itself...........
Hi jules and can
Got to agree with you both! I missed the part about there only being one nucleitide left in trials. That is not good. Jules, the GS-7977 sounds so very promising but so many people can not or should not wait!
I had my annual physical last week and I asked my doctor if he was starting to test everyone born between 1945 - 1965 for hep C and he said he was. Any surprises, I asked? None yet, he said. But to that I added that I had been a blood donor for years before they were able to test blood for hep C - before they even knew what it was. I do think everyone who has had a blood transfusion prior to 1993 should be tested too.
Morning Cando and Bean! Having only the GS-7977 in advanced stages makes me a little nervous. These big pharma companies need to get back to the drawing board yesterday. With all of these natural disasters happening and people donating blood to help others I can only imagine the increase in Hep C dx. And I am afraid people who are borderline on their biopsies, whether to treat now or wait, are going to wait for the all orals thinking they will be available right around the corner. JMHO
Jules
" Fortunately there are other trials continuing with much better outcomes"
That is very true, but like the good doctor states, were not there yet.
"The suspension of this drug family leaves only 1 nucleotide at an advanced stage of development (sofosbuvir, previously known as GS-7977), and I am now crossing
my fingers and hoping that its current impressive safety record continues."
Hope all is well Bean
Good morning , can. This is unfortunate but it sounds like necessary. Fortunately there are other trials continuing with much better outcomes. This - a possiblility of pancreatits or cardoitoxicity - is an absolute reason to back down.
I even wish Vertex and Merck had worked a little harder to try to get rid of the side effects from the PI's although they are not near as bad as this.
" I remind my patients that waiting for new drugs is not entirely risk free, and if a decision to wait for better drugs is made, it is important to review the decision in a few months to see if the changing drug development landscape necessitates a review of the original "
However, my friend, you and I agree on this statement whole heartedly.
bean
PART 2
Implications
The recent concerns with licensed and unlicensed drugs serve as a salutary reminder of the difficulties of drug development. As patients and clinicians who are awaiting the arrival of interferon-free treatment regimes, we should remember that excellent responses in small patient cohorts do not guarantee eventual success. As we wrestle with the decision of whether to treat now or wait for more effective regimens, we need to keep in mind that we still have hurdles to overcome before we can celebrate safe, effective all-oral combination therapy for HCV. In my clinic, I remind my patients that waiting for new drugs is not
entirely risk free, and if a decision to wait for better drugs is made, it is important to review the decision in a few months to see if the changing drug development landscape necessitates a review of the original
decision. The large lady is on the stage, but the show is not yet over.
http://www.clinicaloptions.com/Hepatitis/Treatment%20Updates/ClinicalThought/Thought01.aspx