Healthcare experts in the UK claim that a new Hepatitis C drug called Daklinza can eliminate the virus in about 98 percent of the patients.
Hepatitis C is an infectious disease that affects the liver of a person, which can lead to inflammation. Hepatitis C can also lead to liver failure, liver cancer and other life threatening medical issues. The symptoms of the disease are very silent initially and people do not know if they suffer from Hepatitis C. The symptoms become noticeable only when the disease progresses.
The Hepatitis C virus (HCV) primarily spreads via blood-to-blood contact, which is associated with intravenous drug use, transfusions and poorly sterilized medical equipment. Millions of people across the world suffer from the deadly disease. Reports suggest that Hepatitis C is likely to affect about 216,000 individuals in the UK.
Cases of Hepatitis C have been on the rise in the UK in the last few years and a drug to fight Hepatitis C has long been studied and still under clinical trials. Health care experts now suggest that the drug will be soon available in the UK from the country's National Health Service (NHS).
Scientists reveal that Daklinza has been successful in eliminating HCV in many types of Hepatitis C, but the drug is still to be tested on some other types of the disease.
Charles Gore, who is the chief executive officer of the Hepatitis C Trust in the UK, says that it is good news for patients suffering from the disease. Gore suggests that Daklinza will assist in tolerating and curing Hepatitis C. The new drug will also take medical professionals a step closer to possibly eliminate Hepatitis C.
Dr. John Dillon, a liver specialist at the Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, says that Daklinza can help the doctors to find new treatments for the disease.
"Its arrival paves the way for the use of treatment regimens that are oral, much more tolerable for patients than older treatments, and offer the chance of a cure," says Dr. Dillon.
Doctors reveal that one in five liver transplants in the UK is due to Hepatitis C. Experts suggest that Daklinza has the maximum benefit to patients who have Hepatitis C in the late stages and who are waiting for a liver transplant.
Current treatments for Hepatitis C are believed to have several side effects including fatigue anaemia and depression. However, Daklinza is said to have little side effects and is prescribed only for a period of three months.
Scientists are hoping to eradicate Hepatitis C within 15 years.
