ORANGE : Hepatitis Patients Sought for Study

Researchers at UCI Medical Center need 20 hepatitis C patients to participate in an 18-month study of an interferon drug.

The disease must have been diagnosed at least six months ago, but patients must not have received any treatment, nurse and study coordinator Barbara Walker said.

The tests will be run under the supervision of Dr. John Hoefs, director of the UCI Liver Disease Program. All treatment will be free to test patients.

Hepatitis C is a chronic disease caused by a virus and mainly affects the liver, Walker said.

“You cannot get over it by yourself, as with hepatitis A, and you cannot be vaccinated against it, as with hepatitis B,” she said.

Doctors have had a test for hepatitis C since 1991 and the disease previously was referred to as non-A, non-B hepatitis, she said. Lack of treatment will lead over time to cirrhosis, liver disease and death.

The test drug Roferon has been used to treat hepatitis C in Europe and to treat other diseases in the United States.

“It is not experimental,” Walker said.

Interested patients should call Walker at (714) 456-7821 or nurse Kristi Burnham at (714) 456-6558.