Medical experts are concerned about some hepatitis C treatments because of the possibility of reactivating hepatitis B in patients.
This is the second time this year that some of the top-selling drugs for hepatitis C – including Exviera, Viekirax, Olysio and Daklinza – have been a concern for the European Medicines Agency, according to Reuters.
All hepatitis C patients should make appointments with their physician to make sure they haven’t contracted both viruses before beginning hepatitis C treatment.
In October, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration made the same recommendation when it issued a warning about hepatitis C treatment medicines.
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European medical experts said further studies were needed to confirm the link between treatment and the hepatitis B reactivation.
“Cases of the return of previously inactive hepatitis B infection, which can be fatal, have been reported in patients treated with direct-acting antivirals who were infected with hepatitis B and C virus,” the EMA’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee wrote in a press release.
“This is thought to be the consequence of the rapid treatment-induced reduction in hepatitis C virus, which is known to suppress the hepatitis B virus, and the lack of activity against hepatitis B virus of direct-acting antivirals.”
PRAC also recommended that pharmaceutical companies include a warning label on prescriptions about the return of hepatitis B.
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Hepatitis B is a viral infection targeting the liver, resulting in chronic and acute disease, according to the World Health Organization. More than 686,000 people die annually from complications of hepatitis B. The virus spreads through blood or other bodily fluids.
Hepatitis C is another contagious form of liver disease. It’s also spread through the blood. According to the Center for Disease Control, more than 2.7 million people in this U.S. are living with chronic hepatitis C.
