Biopsy ‘may delay recovery’ from hepatitis due to immunotherapy
Empiric therapy may be appropriate in many cases, researchers say
In patients taking immune checkpoint inhibitors who develop moderate-to-severe liver injury, a biopsy delays steroid initiation and recovery, researchers say.
“Current medical society guidelines recommend liver biopsy be performed in patients who are receiving ICI (immune checkpoint inhibitors) and develop significant elevations in liver enzymes in order to establish the diagnosis of ICI hepatitis,” said study senior author Dr Stephen Zucker, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, US.
