Therapy of chronic hepatitis C early on can prevent the progression toward hardening of the liver (cirrhosis) and liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma).
"Infection with hepatitis C can be treated and most curable. Results for a 10-year study showed early treatment may prevent cirrhosis and decreased risk of liver cancer and death. The cost of treatment also could be pressured," said Chairman of the Indonesian Heart Research Association (PPHI) Dr. Superior Budihusodo, SpPD, KGEH.
According to him, hepatitis C therapy is primarily intended to eliminate the virus, stop the progression of the disease and eliminate symptoms of the disease, among others, characterized by distended abdomen, swollen legs and body yellow.
Gold standard hepatitis C therapy today,
he said, is treatment with a combination of pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin with duration of therapy depends on HCV genotype.
he said, is treatment with a combination of pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin with duration of therapy depends on HCV genotype.
"The success of therapy is influenced by viral genotype, the amount of virus, patient age, disease condition, when initiating therapy and patient compliance during therapy, "he said.
Furthermore, he explains, chronic liver inflammation caused by infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) did not show early symptoms that could be identified so that approximately 90% of people who develop hepatitis C are not aware they are infected.
"Approximately 80-90% of cases showed symptoms and signs are minimal. New symptoms appear when complications have occurred in the late stages, when it's bad," he said.
The development of liver disease from HCV infection to be the beginning of liver cancer, according to him, is also long enough that between 20 years to 30 years.
Therefore, he continued, should be conducted by scanning at high-risk groups are infected with hepatitis C to find the earliest possible cases of infection with hepatitis C and handle it immediately.
Government, together with relevant stakeholders to ensure effective disease surveillance system to improve case finding that infections spread by contact with infected blood and body fluids such as blood transfusion, unsafe sex, tattoos, body piercing and injection with the needle.
Diagnosis of infection with hepatitis C, according to Superior, is based on the results of hepatitis C virus in the blood with the scanning of anti-HCV and HCV RNA quantitative. (ant / cax)
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