Antiviral & Antifibrotic Liver Therapy in HCV + Drinkers and Non-Drinkers

• Status: Completed
• Trial end date: 2005-12-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

The primary aim of this investigation is to evaluate the effect of a combined antiviral, antifibrotic and antioxidant treatment on the progression of liver disease in patients with hepatitis C who either abstain from alcohol or continue to drink. All subjects are given state-of-the-art antiviral treatment (pegylated interferon + ribavirin), supplemented with either placebo or polyenylphosphatidylcholine (PPC), a purified soybean extract consisting of 95-96% polyunsaturated phosphatidylcholines (PC) and which has both antifibrotic and antioxidant properties. Secondary aims are to verify whether moderate alcohol consumption interferes with the antiviral effect of pegylated interferon + ribavirin on HCV and to validate the reliability of various circulating markers as substitute for liver biopsies to indicate the stage of liver pathology and its propensity for progression.

• Phase: Phase 2
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: No

Details

• Lead Sponsor: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
• Collaborators: Hoffmann-La Roche; National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
• Treatments: Antiviral Agents; Interferons; Ribavirin

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adult patients (up to 67 years old) are eligible for the study if they are positive for HCV RNA on testing with the polymerase chain reaction (quantitative test), or qualitative test positive if quantitative negative, have undergone a liver biopsy within one year before entry, available for analysis (vide infra) and whose results are consistent with a diagnosis of chronic hepatitis with at least moderate inflammation, a fibrosis score of at least 2/6 according to Ishak et al (1995), and excluding complete cirrhosis. In terms of drinking, the men comprise "abstainers" (less than 12 drinks in the past year), those who drink lightly (1-13 drinks per month) or moderately (4-14 drinks per week) (Dufour, 1999). For women below the age of 50 years, these levels are reduced in half. A drink is defined as: 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits (80 proof) (Nutrition and Your Health, 1990).

Exclusion Criteria:

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