Velpanat

Sofosbuvir · Velpatasvir

Velpanat is a once-daily hepatitis C tablet that pairs sofosbuvir 400mg with velpatasvir 100mg to treat chronic infection with genotypes 1 to 6, supplied as 400/100mg tablets.

All strengths and pack prices
Velpanat: price of every strength and pack size
Strength Pack Price
400/100mg 28 tablets $1,309.00
400/100mg 56 tablets $2,475.20
Category
Antivirals
Active ingredient
Sofosbuvir · Velpatasvir
Route
Oral
Form
Tablet
Strengths
400/100mg

Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.

Details

Therapeutic Class
Hepatitis C treatment
Pharmacological Class
NS5B polymerase inhibitor, NS5A inhibitor
Minor Side Effects
Fatigue, Headache
Moderate Side Effects
Nausea, Insomnia
Dosage Forms
Tablet
Administration Route
Oral
Manufacturer
Natco Pharma
Storage Instructions
Keep container tightly closed at room temperature.
Drug Interactions
Amiodarone, Antacids, Proton pump inhibitors
Age Restrictions
Not for children under 3.

FAQ

What Velpanat strength and pack sizes can I order?

Velpanat comes as 400/100mg tablets, in packs of 28 or 56 tablets. Each page shows the price per tablet in Hong Kong dollars, and the larger pack lowers the price per tablet.

How is Velpanat delivered to Hong Kong?

Velpanat orders ship by tracked courier in 5 to 9 business days with online tracking. Every parcel is plain and unbranded. If a parcel does not arrive within the delivery window, or arrives damaged, it is sent again free, or refunded if that is not possible.

What is another name for sofosbuvir and velpatasvir?

Velpanat is a branded generic of sofosbuvir and velpatasvir. The combination is also sold as Epclusa. Here, sofosbuvir and velpatasvir can be bought online as Velpanat. These are generics, not the original brand.

What is the difference between Velpanat and Epclusa?

Both hold the same two antivirals, sofosbuvir 400mg and velpatasvir 100mg, in one once-daily tablet. Epclusa is the original brand name for that combination; Velpanat is another brand of the same combination, offered in the same strength.

How long do I need to take Velpanat?

Most courses run for 12 weeks, one tablet a day. Treatment can be longer, and ribavirin is sometimes added, when there is cirrhosis or when an earlier hepatitis C treatment did not work. The length chosen depends on the liver and on previous treatment.

Does Velpanat cure hepatitis C?

It clears the virus in most people who finish the course. Whether it has cleared is checked with a blood test 12 weeks after the last tablet, when the virus should be undetectable. Clearing the infection does not make you immune, so hepatitis C can be caught again.

Can I drink alcohol while taking Velpanat?

Alcohol does not stop the tablets working, but it adds strain to a liver already inflamed by hepatitis C. Many people cut down or stop for the 12 weeks of treatment and return to their usual habits once the course is over.

How does Velpanat compare with older hepatitis C treatments?

Older regimens centred on weekly interferon injections plus ribavirin, ran for 24 to 48 weeks and often brought flu-like symptoms. Velpanat is a single daily tablet taken for around 12 weeks, which is why this type of regimen replaced them.

About Velpanat

What Velpanat is for

Velpanat is a hepatitis C treatment in a single tablet, combining sofosbuvir 400mg with velpatasvir 100mg. It treats chronic hepatitis C — an infection that persists and gradually harms the liver — and it covers genotypes 1 to 6, the main strains of the virus. Adults take it, sometimes with ribavirin added, and it is also used when an earlier hepatitis C regimen failed to clear the infection. It does not stop the virus passing to other people.

How the two antivirals act

Two separate steps in the virus's life cycle are blocked. Sofosbuvir interferes with NS5B polymerase, the enzyme that copies the virus's genetic material. Velpatasvir targets NS5A, a protein needed to assemble new virus particles. With both steps jammed, the virus cannot make more of itself, and the amount in the blood falls over the weeks of treatment. The goal is a viral load too low to measure by the end of the course, and still undetectable three months later.

Taking your tablet each day

One tablet daily, swallowed whole, at about the same time every day; food makes no difference. Twelve weeks is the usual length of a course. People with cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) may need a longer course, or ribavirin alongside. Carry on to the end even once you feel better — the virus falls quietly, and stopping early can let it return.

Side effects worth knowing

Most people get through the course with little trouble. Headache and a flat, tired feeling are the commonest complaints, followed by nausea, loose stools and broken sleep; these usually ease after the first few weeks. A reaction that swells the lips, tongue or throat, or leaves you struggling to breathe, needs emergency care. Sofosbuvir can also rouse a hepatitis B infection that had been lying quiet, so yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine or heavy tiredness during or after treatment are signs to act on quickly.

Interactions, and where to keep it

Avoid St John's wort: it speeds up how fast velpatasvir is cleared, so less of it reaches the blood. Medicines that reduce stomach acid also get in the way. An antacid goes four hours either side of the tablet, and a famotidine-type drug is kept about twelve hours apart from it. Amiodarone, a medicine for irregular heart rhythms, has caused a dangerously slow pulse when taken with sofosbuvir. The blisters stay in their carton, stored below 30°C.

Sources

  1. Sofosbuvir: MedlinePlus Drug Information — MedlinePlus / National Library of Medicine
  2. Sofosbuvir and Velpatasvir: MedlinePlus Drug Information — National Library of Medicine