A study conducted by England researchers has revealed that drugs like boceprevir helps in curing hard-to treat hepatitis C. The findings were published at New Zealand Journal of Medicine. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) causes damage to the liver and this can lead to cirrhosis, (scarring of the liver), and eventually liver failure and death. The symptoms of HCV include abdominal pain, nausea, fatigue or jaundice. Most hepatitis C is transmitted by sharing injecting equipment or other blood to blood contact.

Two studies, HCV RESPOND-2 and HCV SPRINT-2, were conducted over patients with chronic hepatitis C infection with genotype one who had not been treated with the standard treatment. HCV RESPOND-2 examined 403 patients. The patients were treated with peginterferon and ribavirin, the standard hepatitis C treatment and they still had not shown any significant level of improvement.

A second study, HCV SPRINT-2, examined patients who had not yet been treated with the standard treatment. They responded well to drug boceprevir and showed a significant level of improvement in their health. In this study, boceprevir helped cure more patients in 36 weeks of therapy than did treatment with peginterferon and ribavirin alone.