Liver Transplant News and Research

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When a patient presents with end stage liver disease or liver failure he or she may be considered for a liver transplantation. The first step in this is often a rigorous assessment and being placed on a waiting list.

Study shows how tafamidis drug works against amyloid disease

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute and Pfizer Inc. have published a new study showing how a new drug called tafamidis (Vyndaqel) works.

31 May 2012

UCLA Face Transplantation Program seeks candidates for clinical trial

The UCLA Health System has launched the UCLA Face Transplantation Program, the first surgical program of its kind in the western United States and one of only a handful in the nation.

25 May 2012

Clinical data from Boston Scientific endoscopy studies to be presented at DDW

Boston Scientific Corporation announces that seven abstracts and additional clinical data analyses will be presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW), May 19 – 22 in San Diego.

19 May 2012

New directions and challenges in viral hepatitis care and research

The editors of Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute, are pleased to announce the publication of this year's highly anticipated special 13th issue. Published each May, the 13th issue is devoted to a particular gastroenterological topic of broad interest; this year's topic is viral hepatitis.

16 May 2012

New Jefferson Hepatitis C Center

Thomas Jefferson University Hospital recently opened its new Jefferson Hepatitis C Center, one of only a few comprehensive, multidisciplinary centers dedicated to the study of hepatitis C virus and hepatic disease in the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware tri-state area.

14 May 2012

Final results from Alnylam’s ALN-TTR01 Phase I trial on TTR-mediated amyloidosis

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today final results from its completed Phase I clinical trial with ALN-TTR01, an RNAi therapeutic targeting transthyretin (TTR) for the treatment of TTR-mediated amyloidosis.

11 May 2012

54% doctors support denying treatment to smokers and the obese until they quit or lose weight

Doctors.net.uk, a professional networking site, found that 593 (54%) of the 1,096 doctors who took part in the self-selecting survey answered yes when asked: “Should the NHS be allowed to refuse non-emergency treatments to patients unless they lose weight or stop smoking?” They believe unhealthy behaviour can make procedures less likely to work, and that the service is not obliged to devote scarce resources to them.

30 Apr 2012

After hours and weekend transplants do not adversely affect patient or graft survival

A new study, funded in part by a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), shows that liver transplants performed at night or on weekends do not adversely affect patient or graft survival. Findings available in the May issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, demonstrate that safety measures in place are working to protect patients.

27 Apr 2012

TGA approves Ikaria’s LUCASSIN to treat Hepatorenal Syndrome Type 1

Ikaria, Inc., a critical care company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies for critically ill patients, announced today the approval of LUCASSIN (terlipressin) by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) of Australia.

24 Apr 2012

New data from descriptive sub-analysis of patients with compensated liver cirrhosis

New data from a descriptive sub-analysis of patients with compensated liver cirrhosis show that up to 43 percent of genotype-1a (GT1a) and up to 71 percent of GT1b hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients achieved sustained viral response (SVR12). SVR12 has been highly correlated with SVR24, which is a recognized indicator of viral cure.

20 Apr 2012

New data provides hope for HCV non-responders

New data from a number of clinical trials presented for the first time at the International Liver Congress- 2012 provides hope for previously difficult to treat hepatitis C (HCV) patient populations.

20 Apr 2012

Final results from MSD’s VICTRELIS plus PEGINTRON Phase III trial on HCV treatment-related anemia

MSD, known as Merck in the United States and Canada, announced final results from a Phase III, open-label study designed to compare the impact of two anaemia management strategies on sustained virologic response (SVR) in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infection treated with VICTRELIS(boceprevir) in combination with PEGINTRON and ribavirin.

20 Apr 2012

EASL publishes new clinical practice guideline on ALD

EASL today announced the publication of a new clinical practice guideline (CPG) in the area of Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD), bringing the number of CPGs published to date to eight.

19 Apr 2012

Scientists discover new anti-HCV antibodies

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has found antibodies that can prevent infection from widely differing strains of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in cell culture and animal models.

4 Apr 2012

Galectin Therapeutics fourth quarter net loss increases to $3.7 million

Galectin Therapeutics Inc., the leading developer of therapeutics that target galectin proteins to treat fibrosis and cancer, today reported its financial results for the full year and fourth quarter, ended December 31, 2011.

31 Mar 2012

Study calls for re-examination of criteria used to prioritize liver transplant candidates

Patients with end-stage liver disease complicated by the most common type of liver cancer - hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) - are less likely to die or become too sick for a transplant while waiting for a new liver than those with other complications of end-stage liver disease, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

29 Mar 2012

HCC patients have reduced risk of waitlist mortality

New research shows increasing disparity in mortality among candidates with and without hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are on the waiting list for liver transplantation. The study available in the April issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, found that liver cancer patients are less likely to die on the wait list than non-HCC candidates, prompting transplantation specialists to suggest a reevaluation of current allotment criteria for those with HCC.

23 Mar 2012

Bevacizumab drug improves cardiac output in patients with HHT

In a small study that included 25 patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (a genetic disorder that leads to abnormalities of blood vessels) and severe liver involvement with this disease, patients who received the drug bevacizumab had improved cardiac output and a reduction in the duration and number of episodes of nose bleeds, a potentially life-threatening complication for patients with this disorder, according to a study in the March 7 issue of JAMA.

6 Mar 2012

Sun-dried tomatoes may be contaminated with hepatitis A virus: Officials warn

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said two confirmed cases of the infection had been found to have an identical strain to three cases reported in England and confirmed at HPA Colindale in 2010. Both people had recently eaten sun-dried tomatoes.

5 Mar 2012