Interferon therapy for patients more than 60 years of age with chronic hepatitis C

Abstract

Nineteen patients aged > 60 years with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) received interferon (IFN) therapy and a complete response (CR) was achieved by five of them (26%). The incidence of CH with severe fibrosis in this elderly group was significantly higher than in another 52 patients with CHC who were < 60 years of age (the younger group; P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype distribution between the elderly group and the younger group. However, the HCV-RNA titre was significantly higher in the elderly group than in the younger group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the efficacy rate of IFN in the elderly and younger groups after standardization of the background factors. In the elderly group, the HCV-RNA titre was significantly lower in the patients achieving CR than in those with no response (P < 0.05). These data suggest that elderly patients with a low HCV-RNA titre can still respond well to IFN therapy.

Treatment Eligibility and Outcomes in Elderly Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C: Results from the VA HCV-001 Study

“…Our finding that older age was not associated with a lower likelihood of treatment success is similar to what has been observed in prior research. Prior small observational studies conducted in Japan and the United States suggested that treatment with interferon may be equally effective in older compared to younger adults [12][13][14]. The largest study to date from France observed that SVR was achieved in 45% of the 170 patients 65 years of age or older who were treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin for their chronic HCV [15].…”

Long-Term Outcome after Interferon Therapy in Elderly Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C

“…Horiike et al [7] reported that elderly patients with a low HCV-RNA ALT = Alanine aminotransferase; AST = aspartate aminotransferase; CI = confi dence interval; NR = non-response; SVR = sustained virological response.…”

“…When such aged chronic hepatitis C patients with abnormal ALT levels consult a doctor, the fi rst problem is whether or not therapy should be used for chronic hepatitis C. Moreover, when treatment for chronic hepatitis C is decided in such aged patients, whether IFN therapy should be used or not is the second problem. However, a few studies have targeted IFN therapy and prolonged prognosis in elderly patients with chronic hepatitis C [7,8] . Until now, IFN treatment for chronic hepatitis C has mainly been introduced when patients are less than 60-65 years of age because of IFN-related side effects and safety standards in Japan.…”

Age-Related Response to Interferon Alfa Treatment in Women vs Men With Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection

“…Other investigators reported that older age was not an unfavorable marker for IFN-␣ treatment, 21,22 whereas Garson et al 23 reported that patients who had a complete response were significantly younger than those who had no response. Moreover, Horiike et al 22 reported that elderly patients with a low level of HCV RNA respond well to IFN-␣ treatment. Their studies were done on a small series, and they defined a response to IFN-␣ treatment as the return of aminotransferase levels to normal after the cessation of treatment, with no attention given to the status of HCV RNA.…”