HIV Cure Underway, Trial Results Show Effective Treatment – Biotron Limited (ASX:BIT) Announces A cure for HIV and Hepatitis C is within reach as Australian company Biotron Limited (ASX:BIT) announced successful trial of an antiviral drug that will kill both virus. The company announced that patients who underwent the trial of its antiviral drug BIT225 were cleared of the Hepatitis C 12 weeks after treatment was halted. A staggering 35,287 cases of HIV exist in Australia since the first diagnoses in 1982, according to the recent statistic released by the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisation obtained from the 2014 Annual Surveillance Report. At present, an estimated 26,800 people in Australia are still living with HIV. The Australian Progress Report of 2014, on the other hand, found that 1,000 people are at risk of dying of hepatitis-related liver disease. This figure is estimated to shoot up further in the years to come if medication and management of the disease will not be improved. The estimated death toll due to hepatitis went beyond the accounted deaths of 738 Australians due to HIV/AIDS epidemic in 1994. Biotron Limited (ASX:BIT) successful trial announced on Oct 10 shows promising result in eradicating the fatal viruses. The company had conducted the trial in Thailand. Eight patients, infected with both the HIV and Hepatitis C virus, were given interferon and ribavirin for seven consecutive days. On the eighth day, they were given Bitrons experimental drug, BIT225. For 28 days, they were asked to take 300mg of BIT225. Although three of the patients withdrew from the trial after 12 weeks, the five patients who stayed had undetectable levels of viruses around this time. By week 24 and by week 48 when all treatment stopped, the virus level remained undetected. By week 60, following a complete halt of the treatment, all five patients were cleared of the virus. These SVR12 data support the efficacy of BIT225 as a potential new therapy for HCV and, in particular, for this difficult to treat group of HIV/HCV co- infected patients who typically have more serious HCV infection and fewer treatment options, Biotron Managing Director Dr Michelle Miller said in its statement address to ASX Limited. She further said that both HIV and HCV viruses poses great challenge to the biotech industry in the same way that it could open a multi- billion dollar markets. We look forward to progressing commercialisation of BIT225 as a valuable new therapy that will work in combination with current and future treatment strategies, she said. To contact the editor, e-mail: editor@ibtimes
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 12:06:31 +0000
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