Daclatasvir was pivotal to the trial that established proof-of-concept that an interferon-free regimen could induce a sustained virologic response in patients with chronic HCV infection. This NS5A inhibitor is not currently licensed for the treatment of HCV, but has shown promising efficacy and minimal side-effects in clinical trials to date, where it has been tested in combination with a variety of different HCV therapies. An all-oral, interferon-free curative combination therapy for HCV is now tantalizingly close to becoming part of routine clinical practice, with multiple highly-efficacious direct-acting antiviral agents emerging virtually simultaneously. In this article we will discuss daclatasvir's background and review the clinical trials published to date, concluding with our predictions regarding its future place in the treatment armamentarium against HCV.
Keywords: BMS-790052; NS5A inhibitor; cirrhosis; daclatasvir; hepatitis C virus; hepatocellular carcinoma; interferon; ribavirin; sofosbuvir.