Milk ThistleSilymarin liver disease progression in the Hepatitis C Trial (HALT C)

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"Milk Thistle"Silymarin liver disease progression in the Hepatitis C Trial (HALT C)

Silymarin use and liver disease progression in the Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term Treatment against Cirrhosis trial.

Alimentary Pharmacology & TherapeuticsN. D. Freedman 1, T. M. Curto 2, C. Morishima 3, L. B. Seeff 4, Z. D. Goodman 5, E. C. 6, R. Sinha 1, J. E. Everhart 7, the HALT-C Trial Group 1Article first published online: 2 NOV 2010DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2036.2010.04503.xPublished 2010. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.Author Information1 Nutritional Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, MD, USA.2 New England Research Institutes, Watertown, MA, USA.3 Division of Virology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.4 Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition, and Liver Diseases Branch, National Institutes of Diabetes and

Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA.5 Division of Hepatic Pathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington, DC, USA.6 Office of the Director, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA.7 Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA.* Correspondence: Dr N. D. Freedman, Nutritional Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, 6120 Executive Blvd, EPS/320, MSC 7232, Rockville, MD 20852, USA. E-mail: freedmanne@...Abstract

* Note: The terms "milk thistle" and "silymarin" are often used interchangeably.Background 

Silymarin is the most commonly used herbal product for chronic liver disease; yet, whether silymarin protects against liver disease progression remains unclear.Aim 

To assess the effects of silymarin use on subsequent liver disease progression in 1049 patients of the Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term Treatment against Cirrhosis (HALT-C) trial who had advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis and had failed prior peginterferon plus ribavirin treatment.Methods 

Patients recorded their use of silymarin at baseline and were followed up for liver disease progression (two point increase in Ishak fibrosis score across baseline, year 1.5, and year 3.5 biopsies) and over 8.65 years for clinical outcomes.Results 

At baseline, 34% of patients had used silymarin, half of whom were current users. Use of silymarin was associated (P more then 0.05) with male gender; oesophageal varices; higher ALT and albumin; and lower AST/ALT ratio, among other features. Baseline users had less hepatic collagen content on study biopsies and had less histological progression (HR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.33–1.00; P-trend for longer duration of use=0.026). No effect was seen for clinical outcomes. ,

Conclusions 

Silymarin use among patients with advanced hepatitis C-related liver disease is associated with reduced progression from fibrosis to cirrhosis, but has no impact on clinical outcomes (Clinicaltrials.gov #NCT00006164).http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2036.2010.04503.x/abstract

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Also see :

Questions and Answers About Milk Thistle/2010

Milk Thistle/The Study 2010

http://Hepatitis Cnewdrugs.blogspot.com/2010/12/milk-thistlesilymarin-liver-disease.html