Experts create roadmap for accelerating the development of targeted therapies for hepatitis C virus

At a major scientific meeting in Washington DC, USA - Advancing HCV Drug Development: A Collaborative Approach - convened by the Forum for Collaborative HIV Research, researchers, hepatitis advocates, members of industry and representatives from the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) created the roadmap for accelerating the development of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), agreeing that this new class of drugs targeting specific hepatitis C virus proteins has the same potential to improve treatment outcomes for people with HCV as antiretroviral drugs changed the standard of care in HIV.

Currently, two DAA compounds have advanced into Phase III development in the USA and European Union, and many more are in Phase II trials and likely to advance to Phase III research in the near future.

"If there was ever a time when we can change the course of HCV, it is now," said Veronica Miller, Director of the Forum, adding: "We are now where we were with HIV more than a decade ago and can apply many of the lessons learned from HIV drug development to significantly accelerate the progress in bringing new and better HCV therapies to market."