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Shin H, Choi WM, Kim SU, Ko Y, Park Y, Park J, Hur MH, Park MK, Lee YB, Kim YJ, Yoon JH, Lee JH, Zoulim F. Lack of association between early on-treatment HBeAg seroclearance and development of hepatocellular carcinoma or decompensated cirrhosis. JHEP Rep 2024; 6:101089. [PMID: 38974365 PMCID: PMC11225842 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhepr.2024.101089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Background & Aims The association between hepatitis B envelope antigen (HBeAg) seroclearance during long-term nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) treatment and the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) remains unclear. Here, we aimed to investigate the association of HBeAg seroclearance during potent NA treatment with the development of HCC and decompensated cirrhosis. Methods Using a multicenter historical cohort including 2,392 non-cirrhotic adult patients with HBeAg-positive CHB who initiated NA treatment with tenofovir or entecavir, the risk of HCC and decompensated cirrhosis was compared between patients who achieved HBeAg seroclearance within 36 months of NA treatment (the HBeAg-loss group) and those who did not (the HBeAg-maintained group), using inverse probability of treatment weighting. Results Over a median of 6.6 years of NA treatment, 1,077 patients achieved HBeAg seroclearance (HBeAg loss rate = 6.0 per 100 person-years), 64 patients developed HCC (HCC incidence rate = 0.39 per 100 person-years), and 46 patients developed decompensated cirrhosis (decompensation incidence rate = 0.28 per 100 person-years). The HBeAg-loss and HBeAg-maintained groups had a similar risk of developing HCC (hazard ratio 0.89; 95% CI 0.47-1.68; p = 0.72) and decompensated cirrhosis (hazard ratio 0.98; 95% CI 0.48-1.81; p = 0.91). Compared with delayed HBeAg seroclearance beyond 10 years of NA treatment, the risk of HCC was comparable in those who achieved earlier HBeAg seroclearance at any time point within 10 years, regardless of baseline age and fibrotic burden. Conclusions Early HBeAg seroclearance during NA treatment was not associated with a reduced risk of development of HCC or decompensated cirrhosis in non-cirrhotic HBeAg-positive patients with CHB. Impact and implications The association between hepatitis B envelope antigen (HBeAg) seroclearance during long-term nucleos(t)ide analogue treatment and the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis B remains unclear. Our findings indicate that early on-treatment HBeAg seroclearance within 3 years was not associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma or decompensated cirrhosis. Achieving HBeAg seroclearance may not be an appropriate surrogate endpoint for preventing the development of liver-related outcomes in non-cirrhotic patients with HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B treated with nucleos(t)ide analogues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunjae Shin
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Won-Mook Choi
- Department of Gastroenterology, Liver Center, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung Up Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea; Yonsei Liver Center, Severance Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yunmi Ko
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Youngsu Park
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jeayeon Park
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Moon Haeng Hur
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Min Kyung Park
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yun Bin Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yoon Jun Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jung-Hwan Yoon
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jeong-Hoon Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine and Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Fabien Zoulim
- INSERM Unit 1052 - Cancer Research Center of Lyon, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon University, Lyon, France
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Kim DH, Choi YM, Jang J, Kim BJ. Global prevalence and molecular characteristics of three clades within hepatitis B virus subgenotype C2: Predominance of the C2(3) clade in South Korea. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1137084. [PMID: 36970691 PMCID: PMC10033913 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1137084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) genotypes reflect geographic, ethical or clinical traits and are currently divided into 10 genotypes (A–J). Of these, genotype C is mainly distributed in Asia, is the largest group and comprises more than seven subgenotypes (C1–C7). Subgenotype C2 is divided into three phylogenetically distinct clades, C2(1), C2(2), and C2(3), and is responsible for most genotype C infections in three East Asian nations, including China, Japan, and South Korea, which are major HBV endemic areas. However, despite the significance of subgenotype C2 with regard to clinical or epidemiologic aspects, its global distribution and molecular characteristics remain largely unknown. Here, we analyze the global prevalence and molecular characteristics between 3 clades within subgenotype C2 using 1,315 full genome sequences of HBV genotype C retrieved from public databases. Our data show that almost all HBV strains from South Korean patients infected with genotype C belong to clade C2(3) within subgenotype C2 [96.3%] but that HBV strains from Chinese or Japanese patients belong to diverse subgenotypes or clades within genotype C, suggesting clonal expansion of a specific HBV type, C2(3), among the Korean population. Our genome sequence analysis indicated a total of 21 signature sequences specific to the respective clades C2(1), C2(2), and C2(3). Of note, two types of four nonsynonymous C2(3) signature sequences, sV184A in HBsAg and xT36P in the X region, were detected in 78.9 and 82.9% of HBV C2(3) strains, respectively. In particular, HBV strains C2(3) versus C2(1) and C2(2) show a higher frequency of reverse transcriptase mutations related to nucleot(s)ide analog (NA) resistance, including rtM204I and rtL180M, suggesting an increased possibility of C2(3) infection in those with NA treatment failure. In conclusion, our data show that HBV subgenotype C2(3) is extremely prevalent in Korean patients with chronic HBV infection, which is distinct from two other East Asian nations, China and Japan, where diverse subgenotypes or clades within genotype C coexist. This epidemiologic trait might affect distinct virological and clinical traits in chronic HBV patients in Korea, where exclusively C2(3) infection is predominant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Hyun Kim
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yu-Min Choi
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Junghwa Jang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Bum-Joon Kim
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Liver Research Institute, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Cancer Research Institute, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Seoul National University Medical Research Center (SNUMRC), Seoul, Republic of Korea
- *Correspondence: Bum-Joon Kim,
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Lee HA, Kim SU, Seo YS, Ahn SH, Rim CH. Comparable outcomes between immune-tolerant and active phases in noncirrhotic chronic hepatitis B: a meta-analysis. Hepatol Commun 2023; 7:e0011. [PMID: 36691962 PMCID: PMC9851695 DOI: 10.1097/hc9.0000000000000011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Antiviral therapy is not indicated for patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) in the immune-tolerant (IT) phase. We compared the outcomes between the untreated IT phase and the treated immune-active (IA) phase in noncirrhotic HBeAg-positive CHB patients. METHODS We systematically searched 4 databases, including PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Cochrane, until August 2021. The pooled incidence rates of HCC and mortality in the IT and IA cohorts and phase change in the IT cohort were investigated. Studies that included patients with liver cirrhosis were excluded. RESULTS Thirteen studies involving 11,903 patients were included. The overall median of the median follow-up period was 62.4 months. The pooled 5-year and 10-year incidence rates of HCC were statistically similar between the IT and IA cohorts (1.1%, 95% CI: 0.4%-2.8% vs. 1.1%, 95% CI: 0.5%-2.3%, and 2.7%, 95% CI: 1.0%-7.3% vs. 3.6%, 95% CI: 2.4%-5.5%, respectively, all p>0.05). The pooled 5-year odds ratio of HCC between IT and IA cohorts was 1.05 (95% CI: 0.32-3.45; p=0.941). The pooled 5-year incidence rate of mortality was statistically similar between the IT and IA cohorts (1.9%, 95% CI: 1.1%-3.4% vs. 1.0%, 95% CI: 0.3%-2.9%, p=0.285). Finally, the pooled 5-year incidence rate of phase change in the IT cohort was 36.1% (95% CI: 29.5%-43.2%). CONCLUSION The pooled incidence rates of HCC and mortality were comparable between the untreated IT and the treated IA phases in noncirrhotic HBeAg-positive CHB patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Han Ah Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Seung Up Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
- Yonsei Liver Center, Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Yeon Seok Seo
- Departments of Internal Medicine, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sang Hoon Ahn
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
- Yonsei Liver Center, Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Chai Hong Rim
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Korea University Ansan Hospital, Gyeonggi-do, Korea
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Ferreira da Silva AC, Cunha-Silva M, Sevá-Pereira T, Mazo DF. Evaluation of the Hepatocellular Carcinoma Predictive Scores PAGE-B and mPAGE-B among Brazilian Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection. Viruses 2022; 14:v14091968. [PMID: 36146774 PMCID: PMC9503912 DOI: 10.3390/v14091968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 08/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is intrinsically oncogenic and related to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Predictive scores of HCC have been developed but have been poorly studied in admixed populations. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the performance of PAGE-B and mPAGE-B scores for HCC prediction in HBV Brazilian patients and factors related to HCC occurrence. This is a retrospective study that evaluated patients followed at a tertiary university center. A total of 224 patients were included, with a median follow-up period of 9 years. The mean age at HBV diagnosis was 38.71 ± 14.19 years, predominantly males (66.1%). The cumulative incidence of HCC at 3, 5, and 7 years was 0.993%, 2.70%, and 5.25%, respectively, being related in the univariate logistic regression analysis to male sex (p = 0.0461), older age (p = 0.0001), cirrhosis at HBV diagnosis (p < 0.0001), and higher values of PAGE-B and mPAGE-B scores (p = 0.0002 and p < 0.0001, respectively). Older age, male sex, and cirrhosis at HBV diagnosis were independently associated with HCC occurrence. The AUROCs of PAGE-B and mPAGE-B were 0.7906 and 0.7904, respectively, with no differences between them (p = 0.9767). In conclusion, both PAGE-B and mPAGE-B showed a correct prediction of HCC above 70% in this cohort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Caroline Ferreira da Silva
- Division of Gastroenterology (Gastrocentro), Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medical Sciences of University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-878, SP, Brazil
| | - Marlone Cunha-Silva
- Division of Gastroenterology (Gastrocentro), Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medical Sciences of University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-878, SP, Brazil
| | - Tiago Sevá-Pereira
- Division of Gastroenterology (Gastrocentro), Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medical Sciences of University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-878, SP, Brazil
| | - Daniel F. Mazo
- Division of Gastroenterology (Gastrocentro), Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medical Sciences of University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-878, SP, Brazil
- Division of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Gastroenterology, University of São Paulo School of Medicine (FMUSP), Sao Paulo 05403-900, SP, Brazil
- Correspondence:
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Li J, Zhang X, Yao L, Hu K. The bioinformatics and experimental analysis of the novel roles of virus infection-associated gene CDC20 for prognosis and immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma. Aging (Albany NY) 2022; 14:4513-4529. [PMID: 35622386 PMCID: PMC9186757 DOI: 10.18632/aging.204093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Infection virus including HBV and HCV has been well recognized as a major cause inducing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, molecular investigations into the HTLV-1 (Human T-lymphotropic virus type-1) and HCC have been rare. In this study, we integrated several public datasets of HCC patients and filtered seven genes including CDC20 as the HTLV-1 infection-related genes which were differentially expressed in HCC. CDC20 was chosen for further investigation based on its promising prognostic power. The expression profiles, prognostic assessment, association with clinicopathologic characteristics, prediction of correlated signal pathways, and the immune-modulating function of CDC20 were assessed. We found that CDC20 expression was significantly increased in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues and cell lines, and was correlated with histologic grade, pathologic stage, tumor status, and patient age. CDC20 exhibited prognostic value on overall survival and disease specific survival and was an independent prognostic factor. It was primarily involved in several signal pathways, especially the omega-hydroxylase P450 and epoxygenase P450 signal pathways. Moreover, CDC20 expression showed significant positive associations with the levels of several immune cells such as T helper 2 cells and follicular helper T cells, immunostimulators including TNFRSF18 and MICB, immunoinhibitors including KDR and PDCD1LG2, chemokines including XCL1 and CCL26, and chemokine receptors including CCR10 and CXCR3. This study for the first time delineated the correlation of CDC20 with HTLV-1 infection-associated HCC. The disorder of expression and function of CDC20 makes it a probable biomarker for better etiological classification, prognostic prediction, and precision medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juanni Li
- Department of Pathology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.,National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Xiaofang Zhang
- Departments of Burn and Plastic, Ningxiang People's Hospital, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410600, Hunan, China
| | - Lei Yao
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Kuan Hu
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
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Oh H, Lee HY, Kim J, Kim YJ. Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: Comparison of the Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Antiviral-Naive Chronic Hepatitis B Patients Treated with Entecavir versus Tenofovir: The Devil in the Detail. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14112617. [PMID: 35681596 PMCID: PMC9179302 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14112617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Revised: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) are the preferred anti-viral agents used as first-line treatments for chronic hepatitis B. Despite many meta-analyses being conducted, it is still not clear whether TDF is more effective than ETV at reducing the risk of HCC due to the inconsistent statistical methodologies employed in previous observational studies. To reduce heterogeneity, we analysed only hospital cohort data studies with anti-viral naive patients. Additionally, unlike previous studies, we conducted subgroup analyses with enrolment criteria and socioeconomic factors that could not be corrected with statistical techniques. There is no difference between the two drugs in terms of reducing the risk of HCC in a pooled analysis of PS-matched patients. In the subgroup analysis, if there was interval of over three years from the start point of patient enrolment, we found that TDF was associated with significantly lower HCC risk. This result will provide new perspectives for future research. Abstract Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) are the preferred anti-viral agents used as first-line treatments for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). However, the efficacy of these agents in reducing the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. We conducted this meta-analysis to assess the efficacy of anti-viral agent on preventing HCC in CHB. Two investigators independently searched all relevant studies that examined the efficacy of anti-viral agent for preventing HCC using MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases through August 2021. The extracted data were analysed using a random-effects meta-analysis model based on the inverse-variance method (DerSimonian–Laird) and expressed as hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). We included 19 retrospective studies in the analysis. Although there was substantial heterogeneity between the studies, the overall pooled HR indicated that TDF significantly lowered the risk of HCC (HR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.58–0.90, I2 = 66.29%). However, the pooled analysis of propensity score (PS)-matched subpopulations showed no significant differences (HR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.65–1.06; I2 = 52.30%) between TDF and ETV. In a subgroup analysis, an interval of over three years in the start point of patient enrolment and excluding alcoholic liver disease patients significantly lowered the HCC risk associated with TDF. In conclusion, TDF may be more effective than ETV at reducing HCC incidence in treatment-naive CHB patients, but this effect was not consistent in the PS-matched subpopulation that reduced heterogeneity. As a result of subgroup analysis, the conflicting findings of previous studies may result from heterogeneous inclusion criteria. Further studies with standardised protocols are needed to reduce the residual heterogeneity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunwoo Oh
- Department of Internal Medicine, Uijeongbu Eulji Medical Center, Eulji University School of Medicine, Uijeongbu 11759, Korea; (H.O.); (H.Y.L.)
| | - Hyo Young Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine, Uijeongbu Eulji Medical Center, Eulji University School of Medicine, Uijeongbu 11759, Korea; (H.O.); (H.Y.L.)
| | - Jihye Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam 13620, Korea;
| | - Yoon Jun Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Liver Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Korea
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +82-2-2072-3081; Fax: +82-2-743-6701
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