NATAP REPORTS

Current Review & Update on Hepatitis C & HIV/HCV Cection

SUMMER 2001

The optimal time to initiate treatment of HCV in HIV/HCV coinfected individuals is very important and will require additional investigation. It is clear that the immune response against HCV is an important determinant of who is likely to respond to antiviral treatment and who is not. How the HCV-specific immune response is compromised in the setting of HIV has not been determined.

Even with the advent of new therapies to treat HCV, including pegylated interferon in combination with ribavirin, many HCV-infected individuals will fail to respond. Therefore future investigation will be required to determine the optimal time to initiate treatment of HCV and to develop new therapeutic modalities that can be used to treat HCV in both HCV monoinfected and HIV/HCV coinfected individuals.