Colchicine, an anti-fibrotic drug, was combined with interferon in a clinical trial reported by Angelico, et al., in Italy, where 65 patients started out taking 6 MU t.i.w. for 6 months. Then 34 patients took the combination of IFN + colchicine 3 MU t.i.w., and 31 took interferon alone. The results at 18 months showed that “The combination of colchicine and interferon-alpha worsens the effectiveness of interferon-alpha alone in HCV chronic hepatitis. These alarming findings prompted us to interrupt the trial at this stage.” (Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2000 Nov 27;14(11):1459-1467). Colchicine has been known to relieve itching.
