Can Cirrhotics Achieve a Histologic Response?
http://www.natap.org/2001/sep/can_cirrhotics090401.htm In this study Jenny Heathcote did paired biopsies of cirrhotic patients who received Pegasys monotherapy, and used the Histologic Activity Index which combines both inflammation and fibrosis into one score to evaluate improvements in histology. A high percentage of sustained responders achieved a histologic response and 35% receiving Pegasys alone had a histologic improvement. In cirrhosis, the liver responds to cell injury and death by producing strands of scar tissue that surround islands (nodules) of healing cells, making the liver knobby. The liver may be injured by a single event (acute hepatitis), over months or years (biliary tract blockage or chronic hepatitis), or continuously (alcohol abuse). The knobs, or nodules, and scar tissue can compress veins within the liver, resulting in high liver blood pressure (portal hypertension). The scar tissue hinders the liver’s ability to perform its normal functions, such as clearing t
