Boceprevir is a first-in-class oral hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C genotype 1 infection. It is to be used in combination with peginterferon alpha and ribavirin (peg/riba) in adult patients (18 years and older) with compensated liver disease, including cirrhosis, who are previously untreated or who have failed previous therapy.2 When added to peg/riba, boceprevir can significantly increase a patient's chance of clearing the virus from the body.3,4 The treatment was authorized for use in Canada in July of this year.
"The Canadian Liver Foundation is pleased that Ontario's public drug program has agreed to reimburse boceprevir for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C," says Dr. Morris Sherman, Chairman of the Canadian Liver Foundation. "Boceprevir represents a major advance in our ability to cure this disease, and as a result, fewer patients will have to struggle with the consequences of end-stage liver disease, liver transplants and liver cancer. We applaud the research efforts that led to this breakthrough and hope other provinces will follow Ontario's lead and rapidly reimburse this important treatment."
Eligibility criteria for boceprevir can be accessed through the following link:
[url=http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/providers/program/drugs/pdf/frequently_requested_drugs.pdf]http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/providers/program/drugs/pdf/frequently_requested_drugs.pdf[/url]
Hepatitis C in Canada
An estimated 250,000 individuals in Canada are infected with HCV and there are 3,200 to 5,000 newly infected individuals each year.5 HCV damages the liver and may lead to serious complications, including death, when left untreated.6 It is the leading cause of liver transplants in Canada.7
About Merck
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Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck's 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the
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