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      After 30 years, a Hepatitis C treatment that finally worked

      September 24, 2026 |2 minute read

      Two individuals pose outdoors in a park setting beside a mobility scooter, highlighting community-based support and access to health resources.

      For more than 30 years, Mary lived with hepatitis C, uncertain whether she would ever be free of the disease. Then earlier this year, she received the news she had been waiting decades to hear.

      "Mary, the virus is gone. It's undetectable. You're cured."

      The call came from her physician, Rebecca Anastos-Wallen, MD, Chief Clinical Officer at Oak Street Health, and marked the end of a journey made possible through personalized care, specialty pharmacy care and a team committed to finding solutions when challenges arose.

      When Mary decided she was ready to pursue hepatitis C treatment, an unexpected obstacle threatened to derail her progress. The medication prescribed to treat the virus came in a pill that was too large for her to swallow.

      Rather than accepting that barrier, Dr. Rebecca worked with Mary's preferred CVS Specialty Pharmacy team to explore other options. Together, they identified an alternative formulation that could be sprinkled onto food, allowing Mary to take the medication in a way that fit her needs.

      The solution was simple, but the impact was life-changing.

      For Mary, the experience highlighted the value of integrated health care. Her care team at Oak Street Health and the pharmacists at CVS Specialty Pharmacy worked together to support her treatment journey, ensuring she had access to the medication and guidance she needed along the way.

      That support became especially important as Mary navigated questions about treatment. Throughout the process, she reached out to the CVS Specialty pharmacy team multiple times for reassurance and information.

      "Even though I talked to almost 13 CVS Specialty pharmacists, the answer was the same," Mary says. "That made me feel a little more confident."

      The consistency of those interactions helped build trust and confidence, reinforcing the care plan developed between Mary, her physician and the pharmacy team. It also demonstrated how coordinated support can help patients overcome obstacles common in chronic disease management.

      For Dr. Rebecca, delivering the news that Mary was cured was one of the most rewarding moments of her career.

      After decades of living with hepatitis C, Mary had successfully completed treatment and achieved the outcome she once thought might be out of reach.

      Looking back, what stands out most to her is not only the cure itself, but the people who helped make it possible.

      "I felt the care, and I teared up," Mary says.

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      I learned that I had

      a hepatitis C in 1990.

       

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      I thought I was gonna have it

      forever. I'm not in pharmaceuticals.

       

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      I can't read, uh, CT scans. I, I don't

      have no medical license or anything.

       

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      So I have to depend on what the

      medical professionals tell me.

       

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      Hepatitis C is a virus that infects the

      liver and it can live silently in the

       

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      body for decades. People may not know

      they have it. If it goes untreated,

       

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      it can cause severe damage

      to the liver and even death.

       

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      Once patients are treated,

       

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      there is a 95% cure rate

      with antiviral therapy,

       

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      but it's getting them there

      that is the challenge.

       

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      Hey, how are you feeling? I'm

      feeling good. Oh you looking good!

       

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      When Mary came in and was emotional but

      ready to start taking the medications

       

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      and try for a cure,

       

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      I really felt proud of the care that

      we're able to provide her at Oak Street

       

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      because this was something that

      took a relationship and took time.

       

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      And it was really only through our care

      model that we were able to create that

       

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      connection and get to this point.

       

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      The first medication that

      Mary was prescribed, um,

       

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      she was not able to take.

       

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      The pill was too large and

      she wasn't able to swallow it.

       

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      It was really important that

      we kept trying because I

      knew there had to be a way

       

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      with the medications that were out

      there that we could cure this disease.

       

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      Mary called CVS Specialty Pharmacy and the

       

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      pharmacist immediately identified that

      there was another product that might be

       

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      better for her. There was a pellet

      that she could sprinkle on food.

       

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      The mashed potato and sprinkle solution

      was something that I don't know that we

       

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      would've come up with.

       

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      The CVS Specialty Pharmacy and the way

      that they engaged with Mary was critical

       

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      to actually getting us to a place where

      she was able to take the medication.

       

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      There's a large portion of our training

      that does focus on empathy and that

       

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      training allows us to make

      our patients feel seen.

       

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      And when you tie together that

      empathy with safety and quality,

       

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      it allows our patients to build

      trust. Hi, my name's Michelle.

       

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      I'm a pharmacist here with CVS

      Specialty. How are you today? For Mary,

       

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      having a team of health

      professionals that were easily

       

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      accessible, that she could call any time,

       

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      that continuously reinforced the

      same clinical information that was

       

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      given from the provider

      before, that was key.

       

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      Even though I talked to almost 13 CVS

       

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      specialty pharmacists,

      the answer was the same.

       

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      That, that made me feel

      a little more confident.

       

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      So in March,

       

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      I was able to call Mary and we got on

      the phone and she'd been waiting for the

       

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      call and I knew she was waiting. She's,

      she just wanted me to get it out there.

       

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      And I said, "Mary, the virus is gone.

      It's undetectable. You're cured.".

       

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      I felt the care and I teared

      up. Her caring attitude toward

       

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      her patient, which was me.

       

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      The fact that we can share photos,

      parts of our lives with each other,

       

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      that I can hear about Little Stinky and

      the toys you're getting for him and you

       

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      can see pictures of my

      boys. I think it, to me,

       

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      that's what primary care is about.

      It's about having that relationship.

       

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      I really appreciate your trust. That,

       

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      that's the thing that

      means the most to me.

       

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      I appreciate yours because

      my life is in your hands.

       

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      Cheers.

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