Hepatitis C: milestones from discovery to clinical cure

Mil Med Res. 2020 Dec 1;7(1):59. doi: 10.1186/s40779-020-00288-y.

Abstract

On October 5th, 2020, Drs. Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice were rewarded with Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for "the discovery of hepatitis C virus (HCV)". During the past 50 years, remarkable achievements have been made in treatment of HCV infection: it has changed from being a life-threatening chronic disease to being curable. In this commentary, we briefly summarized the milestone events in the "scientific journey" from the first report of non-A, non-B hepatitis and discovery of the pathogen (HCV) to final identification of efficacious direct-acting antivirals. Further, we address the challenges and unmet issues in this field.

MeSH terms

  • Disease Eradication / trends*
  • Hepacivirus / drug effects*
  • Hepacivirus / pathogenicity
  • Hepatitis C / diagnosis
  • Hepatitis C / therapy*
  • Humans