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Surrogate end points are often used in clinical trials where the time to clinical outcomes is long. In patients with liver disease, these surrogate outcomes are rarely validated. Without validation, treatment effects reported in trials might not directly translate to patient benefit after licensing.
More people die from viral hepatitis than from HIV, yet the public health response is lacking. The ACHIEVE Coalition urges governments in Europe and elsewhere to improve hepatitis B and hepatitis C monitoring so that a reliable evidence base will be available to guide the drive towards disease elimination.
In April 2015, in partnership with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Gilead Sciences, the country of Georgia launched the world's first national HCV elimination programme, aiming to reduce HCV prevalence by 90% by 2020. After 2 years of progress, how can the Georgia experience inform global approaches to eliminating HCV?
The WHO listed Helicobacter pylori among 16 antibiotic-resistant bacteria that pose the greatest threat to human health. Given the alarmingly high H. pylori antibiotic resistance rates, antibiotic stewardship programmes need to be developed and implemented. Future research should explore provider and systems-level barriers to H. pylori antibiotic susceptibility testing.
The treatment of IBD is currently suboptimal. Continuous monitoring of patients with IBD, patient engagement and early treatment adjustments are still difficult hurdles. E-Health could be an efficient tool to improve these aspects, but the current evidence for its use in IBD is poor. An integrated cost-effective e-health system supported by a stable legal framework is eagerly needed.
