Interferon Therapy Improves Outcomes in HCV Patients with Cirrhosis

Clinical endpoints were evaluated in a group of cirrhotic patients with well-compensated disease.

Interferon is used for treating patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, but no definitive proof exists that such therapy lengthens survival. In a long-term retrospective multicenter study — using prospectively collected data from 920 patients with HCV-related, well-compensated, biopsy-proven cirrhosis — investigators determined the effect of sustained virologic response (SVR) on clinical outcomes of cirrhosis.

Patients received standard interferon-α monotherapy at tertiary care centers (members of the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver) from 1992 through 1997. During this time, treatment was similar for all patients; in later years, patients routinely received interferon (pegylated or nonpegylated) plus ribavirin with va…

Reviewing Author

Atif Zaman, MD, MPH

Interferon Therapy Improves Outcomes in HCV Patients with Cirrhosis

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Reviewing Author