In general, the ideal candidate for PG-IFN and Ribavirin based treatments is a female patient, under 40, with viral load less than 2 million copies per/ml, geno-type not 1a or 1b, fibrosis stage around 2 to 3, no autoimmune disorders, and no previous experience with similar treatments. Her chance for response can be a round 70% or higher and I would recommend her trying the new treatment if she is prepared for the side effects.

The worst candidate is a male patient over 60, with a viral load over 2 million/ml, fibrosis stage 4(cirrhosis), genotype 1a or 1b, and having a failed response from a previous IFN based treatment. For this patient, the response rate on the new PG-IFN and Ribavirin treatment would be around 10% or less and I would recommend using an alternative protocol to control the inflammation, halt the progression fibrosis and keep the stability of the compensated cirrhosis stage. Most patient profiles hover between these two examples and the decision to try PG-IFN and Ribavirin should be made based around these factors.

In Washington, during the second consensus development conference held in June 2001, experts found that the total percent of patients eligible for taking IFN-based treatments is only about 30%, mainly due to the potential side effects. For those eligible patients, the overall efficacy of the IFN-based treatments is only about 50%. Thus, it is obvious that the majority of viral hepatitis patients still need alternative methods before a complete cure is found.