| [ Summary ] |
It has been reported that a considerable proportion of European patients with porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) show evidence of infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV). In Japanese patients, with PCT, it has also been reported that 84 to 85% of PCT patients display evidence of HCV infections.
We treated four cases of PCT with HCV infection, and two cases were dramatically affected by HCV elimination. Three cases were effective in several serum markers including transaminase, gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase and ferritin, normalized after IFN therapy as well as urinary porphyrin excretion. These results suggest that IFN may he effective in treating liver dysfunction but and in porphyrin metabolism. |