kozure ookami

When people get back PCR results from a drug company saying that their
test results for Hepatitis C were non-reactive (undetectable) does
that mean the virus is gone? Might be gone? Might eventually be
gone?

In the June 2003 issue of the Journal of Virology a team of scientists
publish the results of a special kind of "PCR" (100 times more
sensitive than anything in commercial use) they performed on a total
of 16 individuals who were exposed to HCV. 5 of these individuals
cleared spontaneously (they did not require combo therapy to become
undetectable) and 11 became undetectable with treatment induced
resolution (tx). They included a mixture of genotypes and were
monitored for up to 5 years after recovery.

This special PCR they did detected HCV RNA in all 16. Yes, even those
who "cleared" spontaneously. So it doesn't seem that the virus is
completely gone but rather that is persists in very small quantities
long after apparently complete spontaneous or treatment induced
resolution. Of course the drug companies never said their treatment
rids the body of HCV. In the pegasys literature they specifically say
they don't claim their treatment will rid the body of HCV, prevent
further liver damage, prevent HCV from being transmitted. And I don't
believe any current PCR tests are approved by the FDA. Perhaps that's
because they don't mean too much or imply something that isn't so.
And if the virus isn't gone what are the implications of that?

The abstract of this article can be read at
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/art...ype=abstrac t
and the full text is also now available to read for free although the
full text is highly technical in nature.