Press Releases from The Liver Meeting® 2019
Innovative Machine Learning Tool Predicts Who Might Have Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that a machine-learning tool could successfully predict the risk of having non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) among patients with co-existing diseases.
All-Oral Direct-Acting Antiviral Treatments Improve Survival in Patients with HCV-Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that hepatitis C virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who achieved sustained virologic response (SVR) – denoting an undetectable level of HCV virus - with any oral direct-acting antiviral (DAA) had over 60-70 percent improvement in five-year survival.
Kratom, Botanical Supplement with Opioid-Like Activity, May Cause Liver Toxicity and Injury
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that kratom, a popular and widely available product, may cause liver toxicity and severe liver injury.
Sexual Transmission of Hepatitis C Low Among HIV-Negative Men Who Have Sex with Men on PrEP
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found fewer new cases of hepatitis C infection (commonly called HCV), despite very high rates of other sexually-transmitted infections, in HIV-negative men who have sex with men who take pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) treatments.
U.S. Cirrhosis Patients Often Skip or Delay Liver Cancer Surveillance Due to Cost and Lack of Insurance
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that cirrhosis patients in the U.S. have substantial financial burden, and this is associated with underuse of surveillance – the ongoing collection of health information– for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Pregnant Women With Cirrhosis Have Low Levels of Liver Decompensation Within a Year of Delivery
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that less than two percent of pregnant women with cirrhosis had liver decompensation within one year of delivery, and their odds of decompensation is much lower than non-pregnant women with cirrhosis.
Could Combining Direct-Acting Antivirals with a Common Cholesterol Medication Open the Door to More Viable Organs for Transplantation?
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that combination therapy with direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) and ezetimibe ─ a cholesterol medication that has also been shown to block the entry of hepatitis C (or HCV) into the bloodstream of uninfected people ─ given immediately before and seven days after transplantation with an organ from a donor infected with HCV entirely prevented or rapidly cured HCV in the recipient.
NAFLD Patients Less Likely to Lose Weight, Need More Effective Weight Loss Strategies
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that obese individuals with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) were less likely to achieve a medically recommended five percent loss of body weight at three months on a very-low-calorie diet compared to obese counterparts without NAFLD.
A Healthy Lifestyle May Help Prevent Liver-Related Deaths
November 8, 2019
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that a substantial burden of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cirrhosis-related deaths may be prevented by lifestyle modifications to diet, alcohol use and exercise.
Global Hepatology Societies Call for Better HCV Testing and Access to Treatment
November 8, 2019
Four societies focused on liver disease research and treatment announced a global call-to-action initiative to simplify hepatitis C testing and treatment. The societies, in partnership with the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), launched the initiative at The Liver Meeting®.
Press Releases from The Liver Meeting® 2018
Five Years of Regular Aspirin Use Helps Prevent Common Liver Cancer
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that taking a regular aspirin is associated with a dose-dependent reduction in the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma, one of the most common liver cancers.
Weight-Loss Surgery Effectively Reduces Weight and Lowers Risk of Post- Liver Transplant Complications in Obese Patients
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that weight-loss surgery prior to liver transplantation is superior to medical weight loss approaches at achieving sustained weight loss, as well as significantly lowering risk of metabolic complications after transplant.
Clinically Significant Liver Toxicity Related to Anti-Cancer Drugs is Rare but Often Leads to Discontinuation of Treatment
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors rarely develop severe liver toxicity, but the majority of those who do permanently stop this cancer treatment. None of the patients developed liver failure as a result of this treatment.
Liver Cancer Combined with Other Liver Diseases Driving Higher Death Rate and Health Care Costs for US Seniors
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that hospitalizations and death are increasing among Medicare recipients with hepatocellular carcinoma, mainly due to co-existing alcoholic liver disease, hepatitis C virus infection (commonly called HCV) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (commonly called NAFLD).
People with Hepatitis C Who Actively Inject Illegal Drugs Have High Rates of Hepatitis C Treatment Adherence and Cure
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that people who inject drugs who are infected with the hepatitis C virus have high rates of hepatitis C treatment adherence (completion of their treatment), and sustained virologic response.
African-Americans Face Significant Delays in Liver Transplantation Despite High Priority Scores
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that African-American patients on waitlists for liver transplantation, despite severe disease and high scores for prioritization, persistently face significant disparities and delays in referral.
Combined Glecaprevir and Pibrentasvir Found Highly Effective in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients Who Have Failed Other Therapies
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found the combination of glecaprevir and pibrentasvir is highly effective and well tolerated in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (commonly called HCV) genotype-1 infections who have prior treatment experience with sofosbuvir/NS5A inhibitor.
Universal Hepatitis C Screening of Pregnant Women More Cost-Effective Than Risk-Based Approach
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that universal screening of pregnant women at risk for hepatitis C virus (commonly called HCV) infection is a more efficient and cost-effective diagnostic approach than risk-based screening.
Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Patients Have Higher Rates of All Non-Liver-Related Cancers
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that rates of malignancy occurring outside of the liver were higher in adults with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease than among adults across most types of cancers.
Normothermic Machine Perfusion Can Salvage Fatty Livers for Transplantation
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that using normothermic machine perfusion to preserve steatotic livers leads to altered lipid structure and metabolism and may result in more successful transplantation of these organs.
Preemptive Antiviral Therapy Prevents Chronic Hepatitis C Infection in Heart Transplant Patients Who Receive Infected Donor Organs
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that pre-emptive administration of pan-genotypic, direct-acting antiviral therapy prevents chronic hepatitis C virus infection in hepatitis C-negative cardiac transplant patients who receive donor hearts infected with the virus.
Under-Immunization Still a Major Problem in Pediatric Liver Transplant Patient Population
November 9, 2018
Data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® found that more than half of pediatric liver transplant recipients are under-immunized at the time of their transplant and are at increased risk for vaccine-preventable infections.