Pharmac gives Hep B treatment a boost

Extra funding for treatment of the potentially fatal liver disease hepatitis B has been announced by the government drug funder Pharmac.

Pharmac says that from today, it will widen access to pegylated interferon alpha, an antiviral treatment already funded for some forms of hepatitis C.

Since immunisation became available, hepatitis B has become less common internationally, but in New Zealand about 300 new people seek treatment each year and it remains a cause for concern.

Most people with hepatitis are never aware they have the virus and do not exhibit symptoms.

Pharmac's decision also means access will be widened to include earlier treatment of two forms of hepatitis C. The drug can be used on its own or with another drug, ribavirin.

Dr Peter Moodie, Pharmac's medical director, said making pegylated interferon more widely available reflected current clinical treatment guidelines.

He said Pharmac expected about 35 patients a year to access the treatment.

The decision was made possible by an agreement with pharmaceutical company Roche, involving sole supply of pegylated interferon until 2012.

Hepatitis B is a virus common in New Zealand which can affect the liver. In chronic (long term) carriers of the virus it can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure.

Unlike hepatitis A, which is a disease of poor hygiene, hepatitis B is spread mainly by transfer of infected blood and other body fluids from one person to another.

Risky activities include unprotected sex and sharing needles for drugs, tattoos and ear piercing.

Health experts have welcomed Pharmac's decision.

Associate Professor Ed Gane, hepatologist at Auckland City Hospital, said hepatitis B and C were, until as recently as a decade ago, considered to be incurable.

John Hornell, chief executive of the Hepatitis Foundation of New Zealand, estimated 90,000 to 110,000 New Zealanders suffered from chronic hepatitis B infection and another 50,000 suffered from chronic hepatitis C infection.

However fewer than 30,000 of these were aware of their condition and able to seek treatment.

Mr Hornell said the difficulty was that many people with chronic hepatitis B and C did not experience symptoms, or if they did, the symptoms were mild or non-specific.

"It's important that people in the highest risk categories get tested for hepatitis B and C when they visit their GP," he said.

- NZPA