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In the AASLD presentation, investigators reported on findings in 387 African-American patients with chronic hepatitis C genotype 1. Of the 362 patients weighing 65 kg or more, significantly more in the WBD group achieved an SVR compared to those in the flat-dosed group: 21 percent vs. 10 percent (p=0.004). Relapse occurred in fewer patients in the WBD group: 22 percent compared to 31 percent. Among all 387 patients, the SVR rates for the WBD and flat-dosed groups were 19 percent and 11 percent, respectively (p=0.02). Anemia (hemoglobin less than 10 gm/dL) occurred in more patients in the WBD group than in the flat-dosed group (20 percent vs.15 percent), but overall safety and treatment discontinuations due to adverse events were similar for both groups.

WIN-R is an investigator-initiated study supported by Schering-Plough and monitored by Schering-Plough Research Institute as part of a post-marketing commitment to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Collaborating with the study's principal investigator Dr. Jacobson was Dr. Robert S. Brown Jr., co-principal investigator of the study; associate professor of clinical medicine at

Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons; and chief of clinical hepatology, and medical director of the Center of Liver Disease and Transplantation at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. Drs. Jacobson and Brown are also co-directors of NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System's Liver Clinical Trials Network (LCTN).

About Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is the most common blood-borne infection in America. It affects approximately 4 million people, or about one in every 50 adults, including a disproportionately high percentage of African-Americans. Chronic hepatitis C can cause cirrhosis, liver failure, and liver cancer. It has been estimated tha
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29-Oct-2004