Abstract

The current treatments for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infection are combinations of direct-acting antivirals, and faldaprevir is one of the new generation of HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitors. At the end of 2013, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitor simeprevir and the HCV NS5B polymerase inhibitor sofosbuvir. Simeprevir or sofosbuvir in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin are available for clinical use. Faldaprevir, another HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitor that also has fewer adverse events than telaprevir or boceprevir, is under development. Of interest, faldaprevir in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin, and interferon-free treatment with faldaprevir in combination with deleobuvir plus ribavirin provides high sustained virological response rates for HCV genotype 1 infection. The aim of this article is to review these data concerning faldaprevir. Faldaprevir in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin treatment appears to be associated with fewer adverse events than telaprevir or boceprevir in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin, and may be one of the therapeutic options for treatment-naive patients with HCV genotype 1. The interferon-free combination of faldaprevir and deleobuvir with ribavirin was effective for HCV genotype 1 infection and may hold promise for interferon-ineligible and interferon-intolerant patients.

Highlights

  • Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major public health problem, causing chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with an estimated 180 million infected people worldwide [1]

  • The combination of pegylated interferon and ribavirin for 48 weeks led to only ~50% sustained virological response (SVR) in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 [3]

  • The previous treatment for HCV genotype 1 infection consisted of the addition of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) such as telaprevir or boceprevir to the pegylated interferon and ribavirin regimen [4]

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Summary

Introduction

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major public health problem, causing chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with an estimated 180 million infected people worldwide [1]. The current treatment for HCV genotype 1 infection is combinations of direct-acting antivirals and faldaprevir is one of the new generation of HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitors. The previous treatment for HCV genotype 1 infection consisted of the addition of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) such as telaprevir or boceprevir to the pegylated interferon and ribavirin regimen [4]. These treatments could lead to higher SVR in HCV genotype 1-infected patients [4]. Other next-generation HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitors such as faldaprevir (BI 201335) and vaniprevir, might become available for use in association with pegylated interferon and ribavirin [16]

HCV Genome and Its Coding Proteins
Faldaprevir
Conclusions
Findings
Conflicts of Interest

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