FDA Greenlights Potent Nivolumab/Ipilimumab Combo for First-Line Use
“The FDA granted approval for the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo) plus ipilimumab (Yervoy) as a first-line treatment for adults with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This decision is supported by findings from the phase 3 CheckMate 9DW (NCT04039607) clinical trial.”
Prison needle programs could save double what they cost – our new modelling shows how
“Needle and syringe programs are a proven public health intervention that provide free, sterile injecting equipment to people who use drugs. By reducing needle sharing, these programs help prevent the spread of blood-borne viruses such as hepatitis C and HIV and minimise life-threatening bacterial infections.”
ASCEND: HCV trial shows similar outcomes for patients regardless of provider type
“Overall, the study revealed that the primary outcomes did not differ by provider type — at least 90% of patients treated by each of the three provider types were cured. The researchers also found that there was no significant difference in the number of patients who were retreated, reinfected or died from an HCV-related cause when assessed by provider type. Based on these findings, Kattakuzhy concluded that decentralized care of HCV to nonspecialist providers is “supported by long term favorable outcomes.”
In the middle of a hepatitis outbreak, U.S. shutters the one CDC lab that could help
“After people started testing positive for hepatitis C in a coastal Florida town in December, state officials collected blood from patients, wrapped their specimens in dry ice and mailed them straight to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, Ga.”
RFK Jr.’s cuts to CDC eliminate labs tracking STIs, hepatitis outbreaks
“Lab scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had been analyzing blood samples for weeks to determine how dozens of patients across six states had become infected with viral hepatitis, a disease that can cause serious liver damage. But their DNA detective work stopped abruptly last week. Widespread layoffs across federal health agencies earlier this month had resulted in the firing of all 27 lab scientists who worked in the only U.S. facility that could perform the sophisticated genetic sequencing needed to investigate hepatitis outbreaks, lab experts said. Another lab, the only one in the United States capable of testing for and tracking antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea, often called “super gonorrhea,” was also recently effectively shut down.”
Study: Millions Could Lose No-Cost Preventive Services if SCOTUS Upholds Ruling
“A study by the Stanford Prevention Policy Modeling Lab (PPML) finds that almost 30% of privately insured individuals in the United States, or nearly 40 million people, use at least one of the free preventive health services guaranteed under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). But those services are now under threat by an ongoing legal challenge.”
Hepatitis C Clearance in HIV Coinfection Linked to Participation in Ryan White Services
“Individuals with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection receiving comprehensive care in Ryan White programs show high rates of HCV clearance, according to results of a study published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. Despite expanded use of direct-acting antiviral therapy, the number of new HCV diagnoses has steadily increased between 2013 and 2022 among individuals in the United States.”
PrEP Advocates Denounce Draconian Cuts to Federally Funded HIV Infrastructure
“People living with and vulnerable to HIV, along with HIV providers, scientists, and advocates, face a draconian tipping point: the Trump Administration proposes to radically cut HIV prevention, treatment, and research for life-saving and cost-saving services and interventions. In recent weeks, several offices of critical importance to the national HIV response within the Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, have been targeted for severe program and staffing cuts. If there were any doubt of the administration’s intent to neuter federally funded HIV infrastructure, this week a leaked copy of the administration’s forthcoming FY 2026 HHS budget request would clearly eviscerate funding for HIV prevention, research and other efforts to end HIV as an epidemic.”
2023 Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report
Highlights: There were 4,966 new cases of acute hepatitis C reported during 2023. There were 69,000 estimated acute HCV infections during 2023 after adjusting for case underascertainment and underreporting. There were 101,525 cases of newly reported chronic hepatitis C during 2023. There were 11,194 hepatitis C-related deaths reported during 2023.”
Do ‘Harm Reduction’ Interventions for Substance Use Lower or Raise Trust in Government?
““Harm reduction” interventions for substance use – measures like needle exchange programs and methadone distribution that aim to reduce the adverse effects of substance use, rather than punish or prevent it – have been repeatedly shown to lower the risk of overdoses, mortality, and drug-related crime. But in many communities in rural America, there is a stigma attached to these approaches. Consequently, policymakers and health professionals in some communities have hesitated to implement or recommend harm reduction measures, fearing backlash.”
Alaska Sees HCV Reduction, But Need For Greater Test-And-Treat Adoption Remains
“In a recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), investigators reported that the state of Alaska saw reductions in incidence rates of hepatitis C. “The average annual rate of newly reported chronic hepatitis C (cases per 100,000 adults) during 2016–2023 was 121; the rate decreased a relative 30% from 142 (2016–2019) to 99 (2020–2023).””
OASIS and BSAFE Put People and Places First in Harm Reduction Efforts
“Deaths by overdose of people who use drugs is a significant public health issue in the United States, with over 500,000 deaths in the last decade and even more suffering from additional medical consequences of using drugs, such as the spread of hepatitis C and HIV. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health are working to prevent overdoses and the spread of disease in Baltimore through OASIS, an NIH-funded project that trains people who use drugs to be peer educators and stock locations where drugs are used with harm reduction supplies. OASIS builds off work from BSAFE, a CDC-funded project that trained people who actively use drugs in Baltimore to promote overdose prevention and distribute Naloxone to their community members.”
