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Copyright ©The Author(s) 2016. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Jan 28, 2016; 22(4): 1650-1663
Published online Jan 28, 2016. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v22.i4.1650
Hepatitis C in non-hepatic solid organ transplant candidates and recipients: A new horizon
Sara Belga, Karen Elizabeth Doucette
Sara Belga, Karen Elizabeth Doucette, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2G3, Canada
Author contributions: Belga S and Doucette KE contributed equally to this work, including review of the literature, writing and editing of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Belga S has no conflict of interest to declare; Doucette KE has received speaker honoraria from Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead and has received research support from Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead, Merck, AbbVie.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Karen Elizabeth Doucette, MD, MSc, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, 11350 83 Avenue, Clinical Sciences Building 1-139, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2G3, Canada. karen.doucette@ualberta.ca
Telephone: +1-780-4927686 Fax: +1-780-4928050
Received: July 31, 2015
Peer-review started: July 31, 2015
First decision: August 31, 2015
Revised: September 20, 2015
Accepted: November 24, 2015
Article in press: November 24, 2015
Published online: January 28, 2016
Processing time: 173 Days and 10.5 Hours
Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is estimated to affect 130-150 million people globally which corresponds to 2%-3% of the total world population. It remains the leading indication for liver transplant worldwide and has been demonstrated to negatively impact both patient and graft survival following non-hepatic organ transplantation. In the era of interferon-based therapy, although treatment and cure of HCV prior to non-hepatic transplant improved survival, tolerability and low cure rates substantially limited therapy. Interferon (IFN)-based therapy following non-hepatic solid organ transplant, due to the risk of allograft rejection, is generally contraindicated. Rapid advances in IFN-free therapy with direct acting antivirals (DAAs) in the last few years have completely changed the paradigm of hepatitis C therapy. Compared to IFN-based regimens, DAAs have less frequent and less severe adverse effects, shorter durations of therapy, and higher cure rates that are minimally impacted by historically negative predictors of response such as cirrhosis, ethnicity, and post-transplant state. Recent studies have shown that liver transplant (LT) recipients can be safely and effectively treated with DAA combination therapies; although data are limited, many of the principles of therapy in LT may be extrapolated to non-hepatic solid organ transplant recipients. Here we review the data on DAA combination therapies in transplantation, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of pre- vs post-transplant HCV therapy and future directions.

Keywords: Hepatitis C; Chronic; Kidney transplantation; Heart transplantation; Lung transplantation; Liver transplantation; Kidney failure; Chronic; Antiviral agents

Core tip: Direct acting antiviral (DAA) therapy has the potential to eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV) from the population of organ transplant candidates and recipients and thereby the negative impact of HCV on outcomes. Among non-hepatic organ transplant patients, the biggest barriers currently are limited safety and efficacy data in this population, particularly in those with advanced renal disease, and global variability of access and reimbursement for DAAs. Future research is needed to better assess safety, efficacy and impact of DAA therapy in non-hepatic solid organ transplant, as well as to explore the safety of using HCV infected donors, with prophylactic therapy, to expand the donor pool.