FDA Approves First Combination Pill to Treat Hepatitis C
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iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday announced the approval of the first combination pill to treat hepatitis C.
The approved medication, Harvoni, contains two FDA-approved drugs, ledipasvir and sofosbuvir, and does not require interferon or ribavirin to be administered in tandem with it. According to the FDA statement, both drugs in Harvoni “interfere with the enzymes needed by [hepatitis C virus] to multiple.”
Sofosbuvir is a previously-approved drug for the treatment of hepatitis C, marketed under the brand name Sovaldi, while ledipasvir is a new drug.
“Until last year, the only available treatments for hepatitis C virus required administration with interferon and ribavirin. Now, patients and health care professionals have multiple treatment options, including a combination pill to help simplify treatment regimens,” said Edward Cox, director of the Office of Antimicrobial Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
Harvoni is the third drug approved by the FDA in the last year to treat hepatitis C.
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