Comments on “Real-world re-treatment outcomes of direct-acting antiviral therapy failure in patients with chronic hepatitis C”

Abstract

Dear Editor, Elhence et al.1 assessed the retreatment outcomes of direct‐ acting antivirals (DAAs) therapy failure in a cohort of 40 patients with chronic hepatitis C (HCV) and previous virological failure (VF) to DAAs. The results were remarkable, with an overall sustained virologic response (SVR) of 100% in patients who completed retreatment with sofosbuvir and velpatasvir (with/without ribavirin). We compared these results with our experience in the multicenter HCV‐ Surveillance Cohort Long‐Term Toxicity Antivirals (HCV‐SCOLTA) cohort, an active pharmacovigilance system supported by the CISAI group (Italian Coordinators for the Study of Allergies and HIV Infection). Since 2012, Italian infectious Diseases centers participating in the HCV‐SCOLTA project share experiences on DAAs benefits and risks, both in HIV/HCV coinfected and in HCV monoinfected patients. Overall, 3201 HCV‐infected patients have been treated at the participating centers up to January 2020, before the spread of the SARS‐CoV‐2 pandemic. Of them, 62 (1.9%) experienced VF, and 17/62 (42.5%) failed to DAAs regimens still recommended by 2018 or subsequent European recommendations