Hepatitis

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) has been referred to as a “stealth virus” because most people who develop chronic hepatitis C don’t know they are infected.

The medical community welcomed two new direct-acting antiviral (DAA) agents for HCV—telaprevir (Incivek, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated) and boceprevir (Victrelis, Merck & Co., Inc.)—with an excitement that hadn’t been seen since 1990.

It’s always hard to know how many new therapies will make it all the way through a drug development pipeline.There are 12 combination therapies in phase II trials, 19 individual agents in phase II, and five more in phase III.