Malaysia hopes to become Asia’s treatment hub for hepatitis C; offering treatment at fraction of cost: Health minister

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is aspiring to become the hepatitis C treatment hub for Asia, with promises of treatment at a fraction of current costs.

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said that  Malaysia is poised to offer affordable and efficacious treatments for those infected with the virus.

This is made possible as Malaysia is the first country in the world to be given conditional approval for the use of Ravidasvir in combination with Sofosbuvir to treat hepatitis C.

“I hope Malaysia, launched today as a destination for Hep C treatment will offer those suffering from this disease access to more effective, accessible, and crucially more affordable solutions,” Mr Khairy said in a keynote address at a medical travel conference on Tuesday (Nov 16).

A 12-week cost of treatment for hepatitis which in Malaysia could come up to RM356,000 (US$84,000), a factor that prohibits many from seeking treatment. 

Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah had said previously that it is possible to get a 12-week treatment using Ravidasvir and a generic version of Sofosbuvir at a cost of US$100 by getting it produced locally.

The hepatitis C virus, which is transmitted through blood, can cause liver cirrhosis, scarring and cancer if untreated.

A silent killer, it could take 20 to 30 years before symptoms appear.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), an estimated 58 million people have chronic hepatitis C virus infection, with about 1.5 million new infections occurring every year.

Those at risk were intravenous drug users who shared needles, blood transfusion or organ transplant recipients and those undergoing dialysis. 

Other risk groups include those who handle  contaminated needles, share personal items such as razors, or do body piercing or tattooing.

The development of Ravidasvir was initiated by Malaysia’s Ministry of Health and the Geneva-based Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi).

The clinical studies were funded by Malaysian and Thailand health authorities, as well as other agencies, companies and organisations.

Initial findings published in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology in April this year, revealed a very high efficacy of Ravidasvir-Sofosbuvir combination in the treatment of hepatitis C.

The findings showed a 97 per cent efficacy in curing 301 patients with chronic hepatitis C infection in Malaysia and Thailand between Sep 14, 2016 and Jun 5, 2017.

The treatment involving Ravidasvir will be available in January 2022.