Hepatic Fibrosis: Emerging Therapies

Abstract

There has been tremendous progress made in understanding the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis, which has created new opportunities for the treatment of this condition. Clinical evidence of fibrosis reversibility has established that the liver has the capacity to resorb scar tissue, and future therapies will be based in part on this insight. Additionally, the paradigm of hepatic stellate cell activation provides an important template for defining targets of antifibrotic therapy. Opportunities abound to accelerate drug approvals once biomarkers are improved and endpoints of clinical trials are better defined. Overall, there is heartening evidence that fibrosis is a tractable consequence of chronic liver disease that will be amenable to therapy even when the underlying disease has not been cured.