AUTHOR=Hutchinson James A. , Weigand Kilian , Adenugba Akinbami , Kronenberg Katharina , Haarer Jan , Zeman Florian , Riquelme Paloma , Hornung Matthias , Ahrens Norbert , Schlitt Hans J. , Geissler Edward K. , Werner Jens M. TITLE=Predicting Early Viral Control under Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapy for Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Using Pretreatment Immunological Markers JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology VOLUME=9 YEAR=2018 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.00146 DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2018.00146 ISSN=1664-3224 ABSTRACT=
Recent introduction of all-oral direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment has revolutionized care of patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Regrettably, the high cost of DAA treatment is burdensome for healthcare systems and may be prohibitive for some patients who would otherwise benefit. Understanding how patient-related factors influence individual responses to DAA treatment may lead to more efficient prescribing. In this observational study, patients with chronic HCV infection were comprehensively monitored by flow cytometry to identify pretreatment immunological variables that predicted HCV RNA negativity within 4 weeks of commencing DAA treatment. Twenty-three patients [genotype 1a (