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• Cambodian Orphan Finds New Life in Minnesota

  A lovely story and a happy ending for a young Cambodian orphan with hepatitis B.  By MATTHEW STOLLE, Post-Bulletin Posted July 19 When Chung Eang Lip was 7, his father took him to the market in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and abandoned him. For three days, Lip wandered the city's streets, hungry and calling for his mother. Lip's last memory from the ordeal was waking up and seeing his mom hovering over him. "I was really sick. I didn't have anything to eat for those three days. I only remember that when I opened my eyes, I saw my mom and that's all," said Lip, whose mom took him back to their rural home. By 13, both of Lip's parents were dead, and he was largely on his own, living with an older brother. What most people regard as normal family life — or what passed for it in Lip's life — was largely a thing of the past. Or so he thought.  Read more of this touching story here.

  http://www.hepb.org/blog/cambodian-orphan-finds-new-life-in-minnesota/
• Fighting FHC: A Family's Battle Against a Rare Liver Cancer

  In recognition of Rare Diseases Day today, Liver Cancer Connect is honored to feature an article by guest blogger, Gail Trecosta. Gail’s son is fighting a rare form of liver cancer. We’ve all heard or seen heartbreaking stories of children with cancer. Ours began in October 2012. Our world turned upside down when our 13-year-old son was diagnosed with fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma (FHC).   What is FHC? Not many people have heard of FHC or what it involves. Here are some key facts about this cancer: A rare form of liver cancer,   considered to be a sub-type of hepatocellular carcinoma without the chronic liver disease Primarily affects teens and young adults Diagnosed in approximately 200 people a year worldwide Often diagnosed at a late stage because of its vague symptoms  Liver resection surgery is the only effective treatment option But even with surgery, FHC has a high rate of recurrence and metastasis (spreading)  Sometimes patients who are able to have a multi-pronged approach with surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy see positive outcomes from their treatment. For FHC, almost all questions remain unanswered.  What causes fibrolamellar?  Who is at risk and how can it be prevented? How does a tumor develop? How can it be diagnosed earlier? How can you keep it from spreading/growing? How can you treat and cure it? And each of those questions invites dozens more questions. As with all rare cancers, there is not enough funding, not enough research, not enough clinical trials, not enough awareness, and not enough attention to the cause. As a fibrolamellar community, we help raise awareness, we raise funds, we advocate, and we support each other.  In addition to the individual doctors, nurses, technicians, and scientists who are working hard on our behalf (see recent news and publication), the FHC community is lucky to have several organizations with caring and committed people who are passionate about what they do and who

  http://www.hepb.org/blog/fighting-fhc-a-familys-battle-against-a-rare-liver-cancer/
• Gilead Lead Chronic HepB Candidate GS-9620 Conceived as a More Patient-Friendly Interferon

  Harnessing the Power of RNAi Gene Silencing in a Quest of a Cure for Chronic Hepatitis B, and the  HBV KnockDown blog written by Dirk Haussecker, who believes it's about time everyone got serious about a functional cure for hepatitis B.  As I was reading the latest PK-PD study by Gilead on its lead experimental chronic HepB drug candidate GS-9620 (Fosdick et al. 2013), it finally dawned on me that much-touted GS-9620 has been designed to be nothing more than a better tolerated, more convenient version of an already existing treatment option, recombinant interferon.  GS-9620 is therefore an example of the typical incrementalist Big Pharma value creation strategy.  By contrast, if successful, an HBsAg knockdown approach such as with Arrowhead’s ARC520 would bring to healthcare providers and patients an entirely new, desperately needed treatment option as the field has become stuck with interferons and RT inhibitors for years.  GS-9620 checks a number of boxes for an interferon-better Interferons for the treatment of chronic HepB and HepC is widely regarded as a mixed blessing.  In light of its very poor tolerability, including flu-like symptoms and depression, patients often opt not to be potentially cured instead of suffering through a year or so of feeling just miserable.  Of course, it does not help that after all this, the prospects of a (functional) cure still remain depressingly low in the case of HepB, on the order of 10% for the gold standard HBsAg seroconversion. Gilead is developing the orally administered, small molecule toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) agonist GS-9620 in order to provoke natural interferon production along the GI-liver axis without causing systemic exposures with interferon.  It is the systemic, body-wide actions of interferon that are responsible for its poor tolerability. This is supported by the PK-PD data in Fosdick et al. that show that while GS9620 is efficiently taken up in the GI tract, it does not make it out of the liver

  http://www.hepb.org/blog/gilead-lead-chronic-hepb-candidate-gs-9620-conceived-as-a-more-patient-friendly-interferon/
• Help Us Choose the Round 2 Winner of the "B A Hero" PSA Video Contest!

  Round 2 of the "B A Hero" PSA Video Contest is over and there are two great PSA videos that have been created! View and cast your vote for your favorite. Both videos are awesome! Vote once, or better yet, vote once per day through March 30th! We can't post the videos directly, or you won't be able to vote, so just click here, and you will be directed to the application that will allow you to view the videos and choose your favorite! Make sure you're logged into your facebook account, and don't forget to invite your friends! Now that you know how cool the videos are, how about joining the fun and raising HBV awareness by creating your own "B A Hero" PSA video?  Round 3 is open and will close on April 13th! Join the fun. Here's how...      

  http://www.hepb.org/blog/help-us-choose-the-round-2-winner-of-the-b-a-hero-psa-video-contest/
• Considering the Transmission of HBV Through Tattooing or Piercing

  This month’s Clinical Infectious Diseases evaluated the transmission of HCV through tattooing and piercing. It is important to note that HBV is also of great concern when considering a tattoo or piercing. Unless you are vaccinated against hepatitis B, you are at risk for HBV if you are tattooed or pierced under unsterile conditions. The net-net is if you have a tattoo or piercing in a professional parlor – one that follows infection control practices and uses single-use items whenever possible and sterilizes re-used equipment using ultrasonic cleaning and sterilization with an autoclave , there does not appear to be an increased risk, though additional study is warranted. However, tattoos or piercings in prisons, or other settings that are not performed under sterile conditions are a serious danger. The process of tattooing entails repeated injections of tiny drops of ink. That’s thousands of tiny needle sticks per minute, and a very effective transmission route for blood borne pathogens like HBV, HCV and HIV. This does not mean getting a tattoo will expose you to infectious disease, but if you choose a tattoo parlor that is not well regulated and safely follows all infection control practices, then you greatly increase your risk of infection. Here’s the problem with tattoo parlors in the United States. They are not carefully or consistently regulated. There are no federal regulations. For the most part they are state regulated, with each state having its own rules and regulations.  Regulated states require that tattoo parlors have permits, and be inspected. Who inspects the parlor? – Sometimes it’s the State Department of Health, and sometimes it’s the local health department, so the inspections vary. There are some states with local regulations within the state, and even a few states with NO regulations. That is worrisome and dangerous. What are the rules and regulations for your state on this unofficial list? (Please read the site disclaimer) Do

  http://www.hepb.org/blog/considering-the-transmission-of-hbv-through-tattooing-or-piercing/