How have the recent advances in antiviral therapy impacted the management of virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma?

TACE versus TACE + entecavir versus TACE + tenofovir in the treatment of HBV associated hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

At present, there are a variety of antiviral drugs for HBV in clinical practice, but there is no standard scheme for transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE) combined with antiviral drugs. The aim of this study was to investigate whether TACE must be combined with antiviral therapy in patients of HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Meanwhile, the efficacy and safety of TACE combined with entecavir and TACE combined with tenofovir in the treatment of HBV-related HCC were compared.

METHOD

This study included 536 patients with HBV-related HCC who underwent TACE in Union Hospital from March 2017 to March 2020, and they met the criteria. They were divided into three groups: control group (N = 212): TACE alone; Entecavir group (N = 220): TACE combined with entecavir; and Tenofovir group (N = 228): TACE combined with tenofovir. We conducted a retrospective study to analyze the efficacy and safety of the three groups of patients.

RESULTS

Objective response rate(ORR): 29.2% in control group, 54.1% in entecavir group, and 63.2% in tenofovir group (P < 0.05). Disease control rate(DCR): 63.7% in control group, 80.9% in entecavir group, and 88.1% in tenofovir group (P < 0.05). Median overall survival(mOS): control group, 12.2 months; entecavir group, 17.3 months; tenofovir group, 22.5 months (p < 0.05). Median progression-free survival (mPFS): control group, 9.3 months; entecavir group, 15.5 months; tenofovir group, 16.6 months (p < 0.05). At 6 months, there was an increase in creatinine(Cr) and a decrease in glomeruar filtration rate(GFR) in tenofovir group, which were statistically different from control and entecavir groups (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

TACE combined with entecavir and TACE combined with tenofovir had higher ORR and DCR, longer OS and PFS than TACE alone. The OS of TACE combined with tenofovir was higher than that of TACE combined with entecavir. TACE combined with tenofovir is a safe strategy, but we cannot completely ignore the impact of tenofovir on renal function.

Well-Controlled Viremia Predicts the Outcome of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Chronic Viral Hepatitis Patients Treated with Sorafenib

Simple Summary

Previous studies reported hepatitis C virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCV-HCC) patients might have better prognosis than hepatitis B virus-related HCC (HBV-HCC) patients at using sorafenib. However, the information about status of viremia was limited in these studies. We defined well-controlled viremia as patients who had undetectable viremia, or who had been receiving antivirals at least six months before sorafenib. We reported 116 (65.2%) HBV-HCC patients and 62 (34.8%) HCV-HCC patients who received sorafenib, and progression-free survival and overall survival (OS) rates between these two groups were not different. Before sorafenib, 56% of HBV-HCC patients and 54.8% of HCV-HCC patients had well-controlled viremia and their OS was superior to those who had uncontrolled viremia (15.5 vs. 11.1 months, p = 0.001). Besides, well-controlled viremia was associated with mortality in multivariate analysis (Hazard ratio: 0.63, 95% confidence interval: 0.42–0.93, p = 0.022). The significance of our study is the first research to confirm the prognostic value of well-controlled viremia between HBV-HCC and HCV-HCC patients receiving sorafenib. Besides, HBV or HCV infection was not associated with the outcome, neither in univariate nor in multivariate analysis.

Abstract

Without analyzing the status of viremia, hepatitis C virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCV-HCC) patients are proposed to have better prognosis than hepatitis B virus-related HCC (HBV-HCC) patients using sorafenib. We aimed to elucidate the efficacy of concurrent sorafenib and anti-viral treatment for HCC patients with HBV or HCV infection in real world. Between January 2018 and January 2021, 256 unresectable HCC patients receiving first-line sorafenib were evaluated. High-potency nucleoside analogs were used for HBV control, whereas direct-acting antivirals were administered for HCV eradication. Well-controlled viremia was defined as patients who had undetectable viremia, or who had been receiving antivirals at least 6 months before sorafenib. We recruited 116 (65.2%) HBV-HCC patients and 62 (34.8%) HCV-HCC patients. Using sorafenib, progression-free survival and overall survival (OS) rates between these two groups were not different. Before sorafenib, 56% of HBV-HCC patients and 54.8% of HCV-HCC patients had well-controlled viremia and their OS was superior to those who had uncontrolled viremia (15.5 vs. 11.1 months, p = 0.001). Dividing our patients into four subgroups as well-controlled HCV viremia, well-controlled HBV viremia, uncontrolled HCV viremia, and uncontrolled HBV viremia, their OS rates were distributed with a significantly decreasing trend as 21.9 months, 15.0 months, 14.2 months, and 5.7 months (p = 0.009). Furthermore, well-controlled viremia was associated with mortality in multivariate analysis (Hazard ratio: 0.63, 95% confidence interval: 0.42–0.93, p = 0.022). In real-life, HBV or HCV infection did not contribute to the prognosis of HCC patients receiving sorafenib; however, whether viremia was controlled or not did contribute.

The impact of cytokine change after hepatitis C virus clearance by direct antiviral agents on the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

De novo and early recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have been observed in clinical practice after direct antiviral agents (DAA) treatment. The study aims to investigate the change of cytokines and growth factors after hepatitis C virus (HCV) clearance by DAAs and their impact on the risk of HCC development.

METHODS

The chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients with or without HCC who received DAA treatment were prospectively enrolled. The cytokines and growth factors were measured using Bio-Plex Pro™ Human Cytokine 27-plex Assay before and 12 weeks off DAA treatment.

RESULTS

A total of 37 patients were enrolled for final analysis. There were 11 males (29.7%) and 26 females (70.3%). The mean age was 67.39 ± 10.48 years. 11 (29.7%) patients were HCV-related HCC patients. The HCV genotype included genotype 2 in 26 patients and genotype 1b in 10 patients, and genotype 6 in 1. Among them, 35 (94.6%) patients achieved sustained virologic response (SVR). Two patients with HCC failed to DAA treatment. In HCV-related HCC patients, serum IP-10 level significantly declined after HCV clearance, but no difference in five growth factors including G-CSF, GM-CSF, basic FGF, PDGF-BB, and VEGF. Several cytokines including IP-10 significantly declined after HCV clearance in CHC patients.

CONCLUSION

This study showed only serum IP-10 level, a risk factor of HCC, was significantly declined after HCV clearance and no change in the markers of growth factors in HCV-related HCC patients, suggesting no promotion of HCC using DAA treatment for HCV-related HCC patients.

Antiviral therapy improves post-operative survival outcomes in patients with HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma of less than 3 cm - A retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

The impact of antiviral therapy on long-term survival outcomes in patients with small HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HBV-related HCC) after liver resection is still controversial, as the impact can be overshadowed by tumor-related factors. This study investigated this impact on recurrence and survival in patients with HCC of less than 3 cm.

OBJECTIVE

This study was designed to further determine the impact of antiviral treatment on prognosis of patients with HCC after liver resection, to verify whether patients with cirrhosis still benefited from antiviral treatment, to study the impact of antiviral treatment on post-operative HCC recurrence, and to determine whether patients with a low preoperative HBV-DNA viral load should receive antiviral therapy.

METHODS

The clinical data on patients who underwent curative liver resection for histopathologically confirmed small HCC (≤3 cm in diameter) were analyzed to determine factors which were related with HCC recurrence and survival. The disease-free and overall survival outcomes were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the risk factors of long-term survival.

RESULTS

Of the 795 patients in this study, patients with high preoperative HBV-DNA levels had significantly worse DFS and OS outcomes at 1-, 3- and 5- year after liver resection when compared with those with low HBV-DNA levels (86.1%, 60.8%, 46.6% vs 90.5%, 71.3%, 51.4%; and 98.5%, 89.3%, 75.2% vs 98.8%, 91.5%, 84%, respectively). Patients who received antiviral therapy had significantly better DFS and OS outcomes at 1-, 3- and 5- year after liver resection when compared with those without (91.6%, 69.5%, 55% vs 80.2%, 56%, 44.2%; and 99.6%, 93.5%, 87% vs 96.1%, 80.5%, 61.3%, respectively). Antiviral therapy significantly improved the OS but not DFS outcomes in patients with low HBV-DNA levels. The corresponding 1-, 3- and 5- year DFS and OS outcomes were 92.6%, 73%, 59.1% vs 87.1%, 68.5%, 57.9%; and 99.5%, 95.1%, 91.1% vs 97.6%, 85.5%, 72.4%, respectively. Antiviral treatment significantly prolonged DFS and OS in patients with cirrhosis. The corresponding 1-, 3- and 5- year DFS and OS were 90.2%, 66%, 49% vs 73.9%, 46.6%, 32.8%; and 100%, 93.6%, 85% vs 93.8%, 73.3%, 52.6%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Antiviral therapy improved the prognosis of small HBV-related HCC of less than 3 cm. The survival benefit was also detected in patients with cirrhosis. Antiviral therapy should be considered a routine post-operative therapy for patients with HBV-related HCC.

Impact of liver transplantation on the risk of second malignant tumors among hepatocellular carcinoma patients

BACKGROUND

Population-based data on the development of second malignant neoplasms (SMNs) following the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are uncommon. We evaluated this clinical vignette in HCC patients within the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database.

METHODS

The SEER database (1973-2012) was queried using the SEER*Stat program to determine the clinico-pathological features of HCC patients with more than one year survival who developed SMNs. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated to determine the risk of each type of subsequent cancers. Relative risk was assessed to determine the impact of liver transplantation on the development of second malignant neoplasms.

RESULTS

On SIR analysis, the following sites have an enhanced risk of developing an SMN following the diagnosis of HCC: tongue, anal canal, liver, lung, kidney, thyroid, non-Hodgkin lymphoma (both nodal and extra-nodal disease) and acute monocytic leukemia (P < 0.05 for all sites). A significantly higher RR was found for the development of lung cancer (RR = 2.096), thyroid cancer (RR = 3.045) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (RR = 3.822) among patients who underwent liver transplantation compared to those who did not (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

There is an excess risk for developing a number of SMNs among patients diagnosed with HCC.

Prognostic value of the albumin-bilirubin grade in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: Validation in a Chinese cohort

AIM

The prognostic value of the newly raised objective liver function assessment tool, the albumin-bilirubin (ALBI) grade, in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma has not been fully validated. We aimed to compare the performance of ALBI grade with the specific Child-Pugh (C-P) score in predicting prognosis in this study.

METHODS

The clinical data of 491 C-P class A patients who underwent liver resection as initial therapy from January 2000 to December 2007 in Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (Beijing, China) were retrospectively analyzed. The prognostic performances of ALBI and C-P score in predicting the short- and long-term clinical outcomes were compared.

RESULTS

The ALBI score gained a significantly larger area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for predicting the occurrence of severe postoperative complications than that of C-P score. With a median follow-up of 57 months, the 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year overall survival rates of the patients were 92.1%, 65.8%, and 45.2%, respectively. Tumor number, tumor size, and ALBI grade were proved to be the independent prognostic factors for overall survival in the multivariate analysis. Prognostic performance was shown to be better for ALBI grade when it was compared to C-P score in terms of both the Akaike information criterion value and χ² value of likelihood ratio test.

CONCLUSIONS

The ALBI grade, which was featured by simplicity and objectivity, gained a superior prognostic value than that of C-P grade in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who underwent liver resection. Future well-designed studies with larger sample sizes are warranted.

Viral hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma: etiology and management

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) and chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) are associated with hepatic fibrosis and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). There are differences and variation with the incidence of HCC worldwide. Additionally, HCC develops via different pathways with these viral hepatitides. This review outlines the various mechanisms and pathophysiology that contributes to this process. There will also be a review on the recommended screening for HCC. Treatment considerations, which are different for these viruses, will be outlined in this review.

Virus-induced hepatocellular carcinoma with special emphasis on HBV

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignant tumor with high lethality, and the hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a chief cause. HBV can accelerate HCC via multiple mechanisms. First, HBV induces immune reactions that lead to repeated hepatic inflammation, fibrosis and a deficient immune microenvironment. Subsequently, HBV can modify host genes near the insertion point through DNA integration to cause host cell genome instability and to generate carcinogenic fusion proteins. Additionally, HBV expresses diverse active proteins, especially HBx and HBs, which have a range of transactivation functions such as regulation of apoptosis, interference with intracellular signaling pathways, and alteration of epigenetics. Currently, primary prevention measures for HBV-induced HCC focus on vaccination and antiviral treatment. Here, we report the epidemiology, the molecular mechanism and the progress in therapeutic strategies for controlling HBV-induced HCC.

Telbivudine therapy for chronic hepatitis B: A journey to identify super-responders and to optimize treatment using the roadmap model

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is one of the most serious health problems worldwide with a high risk for cirrhosis and liver cancer. Several antiviral agents have been approved for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B, leading to a rapid reduction in HBV DNA and normalization of serum alanine aminotransferase levels. Telbivudine, a potent inhibitor of HBV replication, has been shown to be well tolerated. Because of the emergence of drug resistance, optimization strategies for telbivudine therapy have been shown to improve patient responses. Optimal baseline characteristics in so-called super-responders have been used to predict the virological response. Baseline HBV DNA levels < 9 log₁₀ copies/mL (2 × 10⁸  IU/mL) or alanine aminotransferase levels of more than or equal to twofold the upper limit of normal in HBeAg-positive patients and HBV DNA < 7 log₁₀ copies/mL (2 × 10⁶  IU/mL) in HBeAg-negative patients were strong predictors for virological response. In addition, the roadmap model, based on early virological response at week 24 of therapy, is considered as a powerful tool to identify patients at risk of treatment failure (HBV DNA ≥ 300 copies/mL, i.e. 60 IU/mL) and to reduce the risk of antiviral resistance. When considering pre-treatment characteristics and on-treatment responses, telbivudine may provide physicians with a wide choice of options to effectively treat patients with chronic hepatitis B, especially those with or at risk of renal impairment, or women of childbearing age.

Changes of HBV DNA After Chemoembolization for Hepatocellular Carcinoma and the Efficacy of Antiviral Treatment

Unlike systemic chemotherapy for hematological malignancies with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has only recently been reported to cause HBV reactivation and subsequent hepatitis. Most patients with HBV-related HCC have an underlying disease with liver fibrosis or cirrhosis, and TACE may potentially induce HBV reactivation and liver decompensation. Currently, there are no clinical guidelines for managing TACE-caused HBV reactivation. In this review, we summarize the changes of HBV status and liver function after TACE and the effect of antiviral treatment before, during, or after TACE.