New Horizons: IL28, Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapy for HCV

Abstract

The current standard‐of‐care for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C is pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin. Unfortunately efficacy is limited and at best 50% of Western patients infected with genotype 1 HCV are cured. The need for more effective treatment has driven the development of direct‐acting antiviral agents (DAA) that target specific steps in the viral replication cycle. Over 50 investigational agents are currently in clinical development. The NS3/4A protease inhibitors telaprevir and boceprevir are the first to have completed phase III programs and are expected to be licenced in the near future. Triple therapy with peg‐IFN and RBV will increase sustained virologic response rat..