BEIJING: Wang Fang, a nurse in south China’s Guangzhou city, was infected with Hepatitis C virus (HCV) 25 years ago and her disease was cured in eight weeks thanks to a new medicine.
According to report by Xinhua News Agency the new medicine, named Glecaprevir and Pibrentasvir Tablets, was developed by the AbbVie Corporation, a transnational pharmaceuticals company.
China has reformed its medicine approval process since 2018 and accelerated the domestic listing of new medicines that had been available in international clinical markets.
It used to take pharmaceuticals company at least two or three years to get approval to have clinical test for new medicines in China while the period has been shortened to 60 days at present to encourage original medicine development.
A total of 10 medicines for HCV treatment, including the Glecaprevir and Pibrentasvir Tablets, have received market approval in China since 2017.
With new medicines against HCV in market, changes could be seen in China to cure Hepatitis C.
However, the disease couldn’t be removed easily and it called for joint efforts of the administrations, pharmaceuticals companies, doctors and patients to achieve the goal, said Zhuang Hui of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Nearly 220,000 new patients were diagnosed with Hepatitis C last year, according to the National Health Commission. – Bernama
