As the podcast hosts insights from our very own audience this week, we are extending three additional conversations from recent reviews of a particularly exciting NASH-TAG 2023. This session highlights perspectives from patient advocates Tony Villiotti and Michael Betel as they join Louise Campbell and Roger Green for coverage of the first day at the conference.
The discussion begins with an idea from Tony and Michael that the cascading momentum the field is experiencing picked up steam at AASLD in November and carried on through the MOSAIC meeting in December. For advocates, the enthusiasm is largely centered on the likely approval of drugs in the near future and the sense of urgency this places, as Tony puts it, on expanding efforts to “get the message out.” Michael notes the importance of educating primary care physicians that there is something besides diet and exercise to support treatment. Louise adds that the alignment of specialties around screening is also critical to advancing Fatty Liver care. In response to a question from Michael, she makes explicit her belief that multidisciplinary alignment and statements will increase enthusiasm further. From there, Mike goes on to ask how the fact that diabetes and obesity patients might be on GLP-1s or dual agonists before being tested for liver disease might affect perceptions of the frequency of liver disease and/or the value of therapy. The remaining conversation focuses on the issue of how long patients must be on a medication. Louise likens it in her mind to autoimmune diseases, which will have flairs requiring medication. As the session winds down, Louise is discussing the breadth and depth of education she would like to see in the various medical stakeholder communities.
This week, Surfing NASH has focused on community engagement and incorporating insights and perspectives from the listeners. If you enjoy our content, we kindly ask that you submit a review wherever you download our episodes. We also encourage our audience to write us questions and look forward to integrating your on-ground experiences and ideas in the weekly discourse. Most important of all, we whole-heartedly thank you for your continued support as we set out to put a major dent in Fatty Liver disease in 2023 and beyond.
