New treatment developed for hepatitis C

Patients with hepatitis C have limited options in terms of treatment.The sometimes sexually transmitted disease (STD) can cause serious liver damage, potentially leading to the organ having to be removed and replaced. This is a complicated process that can require years of waiting for a donor, which has lead researchers to increase their efforts to find more effective medications to treat the disease. 

Recently, administrators at the Methodist Hospital in Houston reported that researchers on their staff conducted successful trials of two recently FDA-approved antiviral drugs to treat hepatitis C genotype 1. The medication cured 65 to 75 percent of study participants who received it, a drastic improvement compared to old treatments.

"Two decades ago, the cure rate for hepatitis C genotype 1 patients was about 6 percent, so this is a 10 times increase," said Howard Monsour, M.D., chief of hepatology at the Methodist Hospital in Houston.

While these drugs may offer new hope for patients, the best way to avoid infection with hepatitis C is by not using injection drugs and practicing safer sex.