Falling treatment uptake in the hepatitis C care cascade is a growing threat to achieving elimination

Hazardous Alcohol Use and Its Effect on Direct-Acting Antiviral Therapy Initiation among People with Active Injection Drug Use and Current Hepatitis C Infection

BACKGROUND

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and hazardous alcohol use are both preventable causes of morbidity and mortality among people who inject drugs (PWID). In the general population, hazardous alcohol is associated with a reduced likelihood of HCV treatment initiation. Less is known about the prevalence and impact of hazardous alcohol use on direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy initiation among PWID with active injection drug use.

METHODS

PWID were recruited via street outreach in Baltimore, Maryland, between 2018 and 2019 and were enrolled in a study cohort. Participants completed a study survey and underwent HCV testing. Self-reported DAA therapy initiation was evaluated at follow-up visits every six months. Hazardous alcohol use was determined based on an AUDIT-C score of ≥4 for men or ≥3 for women. Data were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression with generalized estimating equations.

RESULTS

Of the 720 PWID recruited, 291 had detectable HCV RNA, and only 134 were aware of their HCV infection. The mean (±standard deviation) age of those that were aware of their infection was 48.7 (±10.3) years, with a slight majority (53.0%) being male and predominantly African American (64.9%). The majority (80/134, 59.7%) met criteria for hazardous alcohol use. Only 16 (11.9%) PWID reported DAA therapy initiation within six months, and 20 (14.9%) reported it within 12 months of follow-up. Hazardous alcohol use (aOR = 1.23, 95% CI = 0.43-3.53) was not associated with DAA treatment initiation.

CONCLUSIONS

There was a high prevalence of hazardous alcohol use, low rates of oral DAA therapy initiation, and no association between self-reported hazardous alcohol use and initiation of oral DAA therapy in our sample of PWID that were aware of their chronic HCV infection. Strategies to increase HCV treatment uptake in PWID with active drug use are urgently needed and should integrate alcohol and drug use evaluation and care.

Has the HCV cascade of care changed among people who inject drugs in England since the introduction of direct-acting antivirals?

BACKGROUND

In England, over 80 % of those with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have injected drugs. We quantified the HCV cascade of care (CoC) among people who inject drugs (PWID) in England and determined whether this improved after direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) were introduced.

METHODS

We analysed data from nine rounds of national annual cross-sectional surveys of PWID recruited from drug services (2011-2019; N = 12,320). Study rounds were grouped as: 'Pre-DAAs' (2011-2014), 'Prioritised DAAs' (2015-2016) and 'Unrestricted DAAs' (2017-2019). Participants were anonymously tested for HCV antibodies and RNA and completed a short survey. We assessed the proportion of PWID recently (current/previous year) tested for HCV. For participants ever HCV treatment eligible (past chronic infection with history of treatment or current chronic infection), we assessed the CoC as: HCV testing (ever), received a positive test result, seen a specialist nurse/doctor, and ever treated. We used logistic regression to determine if individuals progressed through the CoC differently depending on time-period, whether time-period was associated with recent testing (all participants) and lifetime HCV treatment (ever eligible participants), and predictors of HCV testing and treatment in the Unrestricted DAAs period.

RESULTS

The proportion of ever HCV treatment eligible PWID reporting lifetime HCV treatment increased from 12.5 % in the Pre-DAAs period to 25.6 % in the Unrestricted DAAs period (aOR:2.40, 95 %CI:1.95-2.96). There were also increases in seeing a specialist nurse/doctor. The largest loss in the CoC was at treatment for all time periods. During the Unrestricted DAAs period, recent (past year) homelessness (vs never, aOR:0.66, 95 %CI:0.45-0.97), duration of injecting (≤3 years vs >3 years; aOR:0.26, 95 %CI:0.12-0.60), never (vs current, aOR:0.31, 95 %CI:0.13-0.75) or previously being prescribed OAT (vs current, aOR:0.67, 95 %CI:0.47-0.95), and never using a NSP (vs past year, aOR:0.27, 95 %CI:0.08-0.89) were negatively associated with lifetime HCV treatment. The proportion of PWID reporting recent HCV testing was higher during Unrestricted DAAs (56 %) compared to Pre-DAAs (48 %; aOR:1.28, 95 %CI:1.06-1.54).

CONCLUSION

COC stages from seeing a specialist onwards improved after DAAs became widely available. Further improvements in HCV testing are needed to eliminate HCV in England.