Copyright
©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Mar 21, 2014; 20(11): 2867-2875
Published online Mar 21, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i11.2867
Published online Mar 21, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i11.2867
Chronic hepatitis C genotype 1 virus: Who should wait for treatment?
Cristiane Valle Tovo, Angelo Alves de Mattos, Department of Gastroenterology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre 90430-080, Brasil
Cristiane Valle Tovo, Paulo Roberto Lerias de Almeida, Department of Gastroenterology, Hospital Nossa Senhora da Conceição, Porto Alegre 91350-200, Brasil
Author contributions: Tovo CV wrote the paper with significant contributions from Alves de Mattos A and Lerias de Almeida PR; Alves de Mattos A and Lerias de Almeida PR also performed the final review of the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Cristiane Valle Tovo, MD, PhD, Department of Gastroenterology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Rua Cel Aurélio Bitencourt 115 apto 201, Porto Alegre 90430-080, Brasil. cris.tovo@terra.com.br
Telephone: +55-51-32148158 Fax: +55-51-32148158
Received: September 20, 2013
Revised: November 21, 2013
Accepted: January 6, 2014
Published online: March 21, 2014
Revised: November 21, 2013
Accepted: January 6, 2014
Published online: March 21, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: Identification of risk factors for progression of chronic hepatitis C has allowed physicians to recommend treatment deferral (triple therapy) to wait for anticipated new drugs with better efficacy and safety profiles for patients with mild to moderate disease. Patients with cirrhosis and prior null responders rarely obtain sustained virological response with triple therapy and the decision to wait for new treatments must be considered. For each patient population, definitive clinical management guidelines are needed to maximize the benefit of waiting for new drugs and minimize risk of side effects and non-response to the current triple therapy.