How do I treat my hepatitis B?

Not every patient with chronic hepatitis B needs to be on medication. Although there is no cure for hepatitis B, there are effective treatments that can reduce the risk of liver disease. However, if your ALT level is elevated (indicating liver damage), antiviral medication may be appropriate. There are currently 7 FDA-approved drugs to treat chronic HBV infection (lamivudine, adefovir, entecavir, telbivudine, tenofovir, interferon alfa-2b, and peginterferon alfa-2a). Talk to your doctor about whether you are good candidate for drug therapy and make sure you discuss treatment rationale, options, side effects, and risks associated with each treatment.

Additionally, if you are chronically infected with hepatitis B and are starting cancer chemotherapy, you should be on HBV treatment to protect against potential flare-up of the hepatitis B infection and risk of liver failure.