Health At 50 Cents a Pill, Allergy Drug Could Beat $1,000 Sovaldi, Harvoni

[tom_mai78101]

A simple antihistamine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 70 years ago may be an effective and affordable way to treat hepatitis C, new research shows.

Published today in the journal Science Translational Medicine, researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reported chlorcyclizine prevented hepatitis C infection in a petri dish and in humanized mice. They said it was effective and did not produce any significant cell toxicity when given along with existing drugs to treat hepatitis C.

But in stark contrast to existing hepatitis C drugs, which can cost $1,000 per pill, chlorcyclizine costs 50 cents per dose. The discovery could be a significant breakthrough in efforts to bring hepatitis C treatment to marginalized people around the world.

The antihistamine had a synergistic effect with FDA-approved hepatitis C drugs such as ribavirin, interferon, telaprevir, boceprevir, sofosbuvir (Sovaldi), daclatasvir, and cyclosporin A.

Many people with hepatitis C are having trouble accessing the latest generation of drugs. Sovaldi costs about $1,000 per pill but can cure the disease in 12 weeks. Many insurance companies won’t pay for the medication until a patient develops cirrhosis, or liver scarring.


Read more here. (Health Line)

 

[KMilz]

Sounds cool, even has a synergistic effect with the current medications used to cure hep C. Got love finding new uses for something like this, especially if they're as effective as they sound.