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Are Clinicians Ready for Safe Use of Stratified Therapy in Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC)? A Study of Educational Awareness

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Abstract

Background

Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC, formerly cirrhosis), is a chronic cholestatic liver disease which until spring 2016 had a single licensed therapy, Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA). Approximately 30% of patients do not respond to UDCA, and are high-risk for progressing to end stage liver disease, transplantation or death. A new era of stratified medicine with second-line therapies to treat high-risk disease is emerging, with the first such second-line agent obeticholic acid recently receiving FDA and EMA approval and entering practice. Recent experience in the USA of inappropriate use and associated deaths has highlighted concerns as to whether clinicians have the knowledge to implement second-line therapies appropriately and safely.

Methods

Online survey of knowledge regarding optimal PBC management in Gastroenterologists and Hepatologists in the USA; the first 100 completed responses from each group used for analysis.

Results

80% of Hepatologists felt they were highly competent in their understanding of the importance of early diagnosis and early UDCA therapy in PBC compared with 65% of gastroenterologists. However, only 36% of Hepatologists and 30% of gastroenterologists felt competent at assessing response to UDCA. Competence in knowledge (mode of action, efficacy, and side effects) of second-line therapies and enrollment into trials was low among both groups.

Conclusion

Significant knowledge gaps in clinicians managing PBC presents a problem in optimizing care. It is perhaps not surprising that knowledge of emerging second-line therapies is low, however more concerning is sub-optimal use of UDCA in real-life practice and the lack of confidence at assessing treatment response which should be a routine part of clinical practice to assess risk of disease progression and will be key in delivering stratified medicine.

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Abbreviations

EMA:

European medicines agency

FDA:

Food and drug administration

OCA:

Obeticholic acid

PBC:

Primary biliary cirrhosis

PIK:

Projects in knowledge

UCDA:

Ursodeoxycholic acid

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Funding

Data capture was funded by Projects in Knowledge in the context of educational material development. PP and ER are employed by Projects in Knowledge. DJ and LJ are funded by the Medical Research Council in the UK.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, 3rd Floor William Leech Building, Medical School, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK

    Laura Jopson, Amardeep Khanna & David Jones

  2. Projects in Knowledge Inc., Livingston, NJ, USA

    Patricia Peterson & Elaine Rudell

  3. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    Margaret Corrigan

Authors
  1. Laura Jopson
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  2. Amardeep Khanna
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  3. Patricia Peterson
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  4. Elaine Rudell
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  5. Margaret Corrigan
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  6. David Jones
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Contributions

DJ, ER and PP were involved in the design of this study. LJ, AK, DJ, MC, ER and PP were involved in drafting this manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to David Jones.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Amardeep Khanna and Laura Jopson are joint first authors.

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Jopson, L., Khanna, A., Peterson, P. et al. Are Clinicians Ready for Safe Use of Stratified Therapy in Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC)? A Study of Educational Awareness. Dig Dis Sci 63, 2547–2554 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-018-5074-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-018-5074-8

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