A new drug to help cure hepatitis has been unveiled and patients are only required to take it within a three-month course, according to the Daily Mail.
The drug, called Sovaldi has been dubbed as a 'game changer' in the treatment of hepatitis C. "This drug gives us the opportunity to clear hepatitis C from the UK," says Graham Foster, professor of hepatology at Queen Mary, University of London. Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that was first identified in 1989. Approximately 215,000 adults in the UK alone are suffering from the condition and more than half of the estimated figures have not yet been properly diagnosed.
If untreated, hepatitis C may lead to the rotting of the liver within 30 to 40 years and may even result in cirrohosis and liver cancer. Throughout the years, various treatments that typically last for up to a year, have been fairly effective, with a 60 to 70 percent cure rate. However, even if they could provide a short-time cure, all of these treatments are known to bring about various types of serious side effects. Recent study has shown, on the other hand, that Sovaldi, when takein in combination with present treatment options may provide cure for patients in just 12 weeks.
"If we treat 20,000 patients every year for the next ten years, nobody will transmit the virus and it will be gone. Hepatitis C mutates every time it copies itself, making treating it like hitting a moving target. Sofosbuvir (Sovaldi) hits at the enzyme at the very heart of the virus, stopping it from mutating or becoming resistant," said Professor Foster.
