Women Are at Greater Risk Than Men of Graft Loss After Undergoing Liver Transplantation for Hepatitis C-related Liver Disease

Women Are at Greater Risk Than Men of Graft Loss After Undergoing Liver
Transplantation for Hepatitis C-related Liver Disease
Presentation: Sunday, November 1, 2009, 8:00 am Eastern Time in Boston, MA

ALEXANDRIA, Va. and BOSTON, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Although women with
chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are at lower risk for developing
cirrhosis, researchers who compared outcomes for men and women after having
liver transplantation found that women have a significantly increased risk of
overall graft loss and graft loss from recurrent HCV than men. "Given the
higher rate of graft losses due to recurrent HCV and higher risk of developing
advanced HCV, our results highlight the need for close monitoring of HCV
disease progression after liver transplantation and the appropriate timing of
interventions, such as HCV treatment," said Jennifer Lai, MD, lead
investigator for the study.

In this study to be presented at the annual meeting of the American
Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, data were analyzed from four
experienced liver transplant centers in the United States, which included 850
patients who underwent liver transplantation from March 2002 through December
2007 for HCV-related liver disease. Not only were women at greater risk of
graft loss from all causes and recurrent HCV, but they experienced increased
rates of advanced HCV-related liver disease compared with men.

These differences were not explained by differences in baseline recipient or
donor characteristics, or rates of acute rejection after transplantation.
"However," said Dr. Lai, "understanding the factors contributing to this
gender difference is critical to improving post-transplant outcomes for all
patients with HCV."

Based on this multicenter study, further studies are needed to evaluate
modifiable donor factors and post-transplant therapeutics that influence
outcomes. There may be a future role for gender-specific models to optimize
post-transplant outcomes in women. "Whether we should have a more intensive
approach to monitoring for and management of recurrent HCV would improve
outcomes in women will need to be established in future studies," said Dr.
Lai.

In addition, Dr. Lai discussed future research on this topic, "We found
recipient age to be a stronger predictor of outcome for women than for men,
and we noted that women had higher rates of having a sex-mismatch donor liver
than men. A more in depth analysis of the role of recipient-donor sex mismatch
is planned. In addition, we found that women had significantly increased
rates of acute rejection and although this factor did not account for
differences in graft outcomes in our study, we believe sex differences in
frequency of rejection and response to rejection treatment warrant further
study."

Abstract title:
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infected females are at higher risk of graft loss
after liver transplantation (LT): A multicenter cohort study

About the AASLD

AASLD is the leading medical society focused solely on advancing the science
and practice of hepatology and represents more than 3,300 practitioners,
researchers, and allied health professionals worldwide. Founded by physicians
in 1950, AASLD has upheld the standards of the profession and fostered
research that generates treatment options for the millions of patients with
liver diseases.

This year's Liver Meeting, held in Boston, Massachusetts, October 30 -
November 3, will bring together more than 7,000 researchers from 55 countries.
A pressroom will be available from October 31 at the annual meeting. For
copies of abstracts and press releases, or to arrange for pre-conference
research interviews contact Gregory Bologna at 703-299-9766. To pre-register,
call Ann Tracy at 703-299-9766.

Press releases, additional information for the media, and all abstracts are
available online at www.aasld.org.

Media Contact: Gregory Bologna
703/299-9766
gbologna@aasld.org

Press Room: October 31 - November 3, 2009
Hynes Convention Center, Room 209
Telephone: (617) 954-2827

Researcher: Jennifer Lai, MD
Email: jennifer.lai@ucsf.edu
Phone: (415) 443-6251

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SOURCE American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD)

Gregory Bologna, +1-703-299-9766, gbologna@aasld.org