Overview

• Reality TV star Sana Makbul was admitted to hospital earlier this month when her long-standing autoimmune hepatitis escalated to liver cirrhosis.
• Cirrhosis represents the advanced stage of chronic hepatitis in which healthy liver tissue is replaced by scar tissue, undermining organ function.
• Makbul has begun immunotherapy aimed at modulating her immune response and staving off the need for a liver transplant.
• Immunotherapy, often used to treat advanced liver cancer, can strengthen cancer-targeting immune cells but poses risks to healthy liver tissue in hepatitis patients.
• Standard care for autoimmune hepatitis involves corticosteroids and immunosuppressants to control inflammation and slow disease progression.