Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Patients With Hemoglobinopathies

Many patients with hemoglobinopathies have been infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) through blood transfusion, mostly before screening of blood donors was introduced in 1992. The reported prevalence of anti-HCV-positive thalassemia patients varies between 4.4% in Turkey and 85.4% in Italy. HCV infection is associated with decompensated cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma and other liver complications, especially if left untreated. Prevalence of cirrhosis in thalassemia patients up to 32% have been reported.

Thalassemia patients with cirrhosis have an increased risk of death. Progression of liver fibrosis is strongly related to the presence of chronic HCV infection and extent of iron overload. Thalassemia patients with elevated serum aminotransferase levels for >6 months should be tested for HCV infection and, in the event of HCV infection, HCV genotyping is recommended in order to plan antiviral therapy and the likelihood of response. Noninvasive transient elastography (FibroScan®) can be used to determine the presence of fibrosis in thalassemia patients with HCV infection.

Effective chelation therapy and treatment of HCV infection are needed in order to prevent liver complications and decrease morbidity and mortality. For many years, pegylated interferon (peg-IFN) plus ribavirin was the standard of care for the treatment of chronic HCV infection and decompensated cirrhosis. Studies of peg-IFN plus ribavirin have demonstrated sustained virological response (SVR) rates of 25-64% in patients with thalassemia and HCV infection. However, peg-IFN and ribavirin are both associated with anemia. Ribavirin-associated hemolysis leads to an increased requirement for blood transfusions, which in turn can lead to worsening of iron overload. Therefore, European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) 2015 guidelines recommend interferon-free regimens for the treatment of HCV infection in patients with hemoglobinopathies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of DAA standard regimens in patients with hemoglobinopathies and chronic HCV liver disease treated in Italy.

Antiviral treatments were administered according to Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) guidelines.

Inclusion criteria

• Patients with hemoglobinopathies, chronic hepatitis due to HCV and the presence of fibrosis (defined as Fibroscan® stiffness ≥10 kPa) or a bioptic evaluation of cirrhosis (same ISHAK fibrosis score) determined within 6 months previously. Patients with extrahepatic manifestations of chronic hepatitis C virus infection (cryoglobulinemia with organ damage, B-lymphoproliferative disorders) were also included.

Exclusion criteria

• Patients with active cancer, including hepatocellular carcinoma, and pregnant or lactating females were excluded from the study