Hepatitis C elimination in Spain is on track collaboration and implementation of comprehensive diagnostic strategiesaccording to a meeting organized by Gilead Sciences “Viral Hepatitis Workshop: Current Situation and Comprehensive and Opportunistic Diagnosis.”

Since the implementation of the “Strategic Plan for Approach to Hepatitis C” in Spain, there have been more than 161,000 patients with a cure rate of about 95%, which shows the efforts made to change the lives of these patients and positions the country as a benchmark in this field. In fact, Spain could become the second country in the world to eliminate hepatitis C after Iceland.

Despite the efforts made, so far more than 76,500 people with HCV among the general population, of which 22,500 people have active HCV infection and have not been diagnosed. To do this, it is important to use all the possibilities for diagnosing patients, focusing on those initiatives that aim to improve their prevention, early detection, treatment and integrated management. This is one of the main conclusions reached by the experts who participated in the meeting.

Dr. Manuel Romero, head of the Department of Digestion at the Virgen del Rocío University Hospital, was proud of what had been achieved in this area, but claimed orn extra effort to ensure no patient is left behind and achieve the WHO elimination target. “We have patients lost in the ER, as well as in primary care units or out of the system, to which we need to add those who are in vulnerable populations, such as the homeless. It is more difficult for all these people to find them, and for this reason, our big task is to identify them, because today the patient found is a treated and cured patient, ”he explained.

All participants in the revolution stressed that emergence of new antiviral drugs direct action, which made it possible to change the approach to this infection. Dr. José Luis Calleja, President of the Spanish Association for the Study of the Liver (AEEH), pointed out that “in 2015, hepatitis C was the leading cause of cancer, cirrhosis, liver transplants… an unprecedented transformation of healthcare. This not only allowed patients to be cured, but also provided significant cost savings for the healthcare system by reducing transplants, liver complications, etc.”

In addition, the huge payoffs of these treatments were highlighted, allowing the healthcare system to save a lot of money. In this sense, a recent study was cited in which it became clear that during 2015-2019 in Spain, Gilead DAA treatment significantly reduced mortality from liver disease (-82%), liver complications (-89% decompensated cirrhosis, -77% hepatocellular carcinomas, -84% of liver transplants), as well as the costs associated with the treatment of these complications (-770 million euros) throughout the life of patients. Thus, the National Health System (SNS) saved 274 million euros.

Dr. Calleja recalled that Spain has six regional hepatitis C elimination plans. with a different scope and focus, but with a common goal of diagnosing new cases using the possibilities of contact with patients in the social network. In this sense, he pointed out that the achievement of an opportunistic diagnosis in certain patient profiles (in the emergency department, preoperative …), as well as the implementation of a comprehensive diagnosis of viral hepatitis; optimize screening and diagnostic processes with the help of automation and computer tools; or promote the approach among vulnerable populations or those with higher risk factors are strategies that are producing the desired results and need to continue to be influenced.

In this regard, Dr. Javier Crespo, Director of the Digestive Services of the Marquis de Valdesilla Hospital, recalled that in order to eliminate HCV, it is necessary to use all diagnostic options, such as age screening or emergency services and/or PC or, or where it is possible to achieve rapid and complete diagnosis of chronic viral hepatitis due to single analytical extraction and thus facilitate access to effective treatment. “If any virus (HCV, HBV, HDV or HIV) is suspected, all others should be tested. In this way, we take advantage of the diagnostics in one consultation and one removal, which allows us to do everything more efficiently and guarantee the result,” he said.

During the presentation, Marta Velasquez, Director of Gilead’s Liver Business Unit, emphasized that Gilead has played and continues to play a fundamental role in changing the course of HCV and will continue to work with all stakeholders until an agreement is reached on a complete elimination through initiatives that ensure diagnosis and treatment of all patients. This year, the company celebrates two decades of innovation in viral hepatitis since it launched its first HBV drug in 2003. Since 2014, Gilead has had a portfolio of antiviral drugs for the treatment of hepatitis C, and more than 4 million people worldwide have received this treatment, including 100,000 people in Spain.

knowing about it is necessary to continue cooperation with state authoritiesscientific societies and health associations dedicated to the elimination of hepatitis C, Marta Velasquez noted that they are “very proud of the agreements and collaborations that we are developing with all parties involved, scientific societies, patients and healthcare professionals to make a difference in people’s lives.” patients with this infection. We have been working on this for a long time and will continue to do so until we achieve the long-awaited elimination.

In Spain, Gilead has developed an ambitious strategy with which it supports innovative projects both in the hospital and in various health centers in order to continue the diagnosis and referral of all infected patients. Always following the recommendations of the scientific societies and supporting these projects regional eradication plans and professionals in their goal of achieving disease eradication. Thus, among these projects, it is worth highlighting the Gilead Hepatitis C Micro Elimination Scholarships, which, together with AEEH, just failed their 5th competition with 15 projects; o Detect-C, a project in collaboration with Socidrogalcohol, which provides diagnostic kits to those centers that serve vulnerable populations who ask for easier diagnosis of these patients.