Patient-reported outcomes assessment in chronic hepatitis C treated with sofosbuvir and ribavirin: The VALENCE study

• Published in: Journal of hepatology 2014-08, Vol.61 (2), p.228-234
• Main Authors: Younossi, Zobair M, Stepanova, Maria, Zeuzem, Stefan, Dusheiko, Geoffrey, Esteban, Rafael, Hezode, Christophe, Reesink, Hendrik W, Weiland, Ola, Nader, Fatema, Hunt, Sharon L
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Antiviral Agents - administration & dosage; CLDQ-HCV; Clinical trial; Drug Therapy, Combination; FACIT-F; Female; Gastroenterology and Hepatology; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C, Chronic - drug therapy; Hepatitis C, Chronic - virology; Humans; Male; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Middle Aged; Patient Outcome Assessment; Patient-reported outcomes; Ribavirin - administration & dosage; Ribavirin - adverse effects; SF-36; Sofosbuvir; Uridine Monophosphate - administration & dosage; Uridine Monophosphate - adverse effects; Uridine Monophosphate - analogs & derivatives; WPAI
• ISSN: 0168-8278; 1600-0641; 1600-0641
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2014.04.003

Background & Aim Interferon (IFN) negatively impacts patients’ well-being and patient-reported outcomes (PROs). Our aim was to assess PROs during treatment with an IFN-free regimen [sofosbuvir (SOF) + ribavirin (RBV)]. Methods Four PRO questionnaires [Short Form-36 (SF-36), Chronic Liver Disease Questionnaire-HCV (CLDQ-HCV), Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-F), Work Productivity and Activity Index: Specific Health Problem (WPAI:SHP)] were administered at baseline, end-of-treatment and post-treatment to 334 HCV genotype 2 and 3 patients (naïve or treatment-experienced) enrolled in the VALENCE study. Of these, 250 genotype 3 patients were treated for 24 weeks while 73 genotype 2 and 11 genotype 3 patients received 12 weeks of treatment. Results Baseline PRO scores were similar between the two arms of the study. Throughout and after treatment, patients receiving 12 or 24 weeks had similar FACIT-F, CLDQ-HCV, SF-36 and WPAI:SHP scores (all p >0.05). Compared to their own baseline scores, patients receiving SOF + RBV experienced modest declines in some aspects of SF-36, CLDQ-HCV, fatigue and WPAI:SHP scores ( p = 0.04 to 0.05). In patients achieving SVR-12 (regardless of the regimen), significant improvements were noted in general health ( p = 0.0004), CLDQ-HCV ( p