Multi-center clinical studies for strategies to improve patients' accessibility to peginterferon therapy: Consideration based on both prospective study and retrospective study

To evaluate whether start-up of peginterferon therapy for chronic hepatitis C at out-patient clinic may improve patients' accessibility, multi-center clinical studies were performed. In retrospective study with 879 patients who had already finished peginterferon (plus ribavirin) therapy, adherence to treatment regimen and final virological response were quite similar in both modes of start-up (at hospitalization or at out-patient clinic). In addition, interruption rate was rather lower in patients with start-up at out-patient clinic than in those at hospitalization. In prospective study, unsigned questionnaires about modes of start-up were carried out. Twenty-two out of 38 (58%) patients who started up peginterferon therapy at hospitalization preferred shorter hospital stays or start-up at out-patient clinic. In contrast, fifty-nine out of 73 (81%) patients who started up at out-patient clinic were completely satisfied. These lines of evidence may suggest start-up at out-patient clinic is fully safe and improves patients' accessibility to peginterferon therapy.