FDA approves hepatitis C treatment

The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved Hoffman-La Roche's hepatitis C treatment Pegasys, a long-lasting form of interferon, The Washington Post reports. Current hepatitis C treatments include a combination regimen of interferon and ribavirin, with interferon being injected three times per week. Pegasys is injected only once per week. Clinical studies showed that Pegasys, combined with ribavirin, is more effective at lowering hepatitis C viral levels than the standard interferon-ribavirin treatment. Roche is currently seeking FDA approval of its ribavirin drug, Copegus. The company hopes to begin marketing a combination regimen of Pegasys and Copegus in the United States early next year.