Abstract
Background
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) not associated with active hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, termed non-B non-C HCC (nBnC-HCC), is reportedly correlated with better survival outcomes than HBV- or HCV-related HCC. However, the nBnC-HCC population includes patients with a history of HBV infection possessing anti-hepatitis B core antibodies (HBcAb), and the oncologic significance of this finding remains unclear.
Methods
A retrospective review of the data for 562 patients who underwent curative resection for primary HCC was performed. The clinical outcomes were compared among the following four groups: HBV group (HBsAg-positive), HCV group (HCVAb-positive), HBcAb-positive nBnC-HCC group, and pure nBnC-HCC group (negative for these viral markers).
Results
The HBcAb-positive nBnC-HCC group showed better overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates than the HBV, HCV, and pure nBnC-HCC groups (5-year OS 89.4 vs 68.4, 62.0, and 66.2 %; P = 0.003; 5-year RFS 53.8 vs 31.4, 28.1, and 33.6 %; P = 0.01). A multivariate analysis confirmed that a history of HBV is associated with a lower risk of OS (hazard ratio [HR] 0.23; 95 % confidence interval [CI] 0.09–0.56; P = 0.001) and RFS (HR 0.45; 95 % CI 0.27–0.73; P = 0.001). The HBcAb-positive nBnC-HCC group was associated with a higher incidence of well-differentiated HCC (33 vs 15 %; P = 0.03) and lower plasma des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin concentration (72 vs 357 mAu/mL; P = 0.047) than the pure nBnC group.
Conclusion
The subgroup of patients with a history of HBV infection may have better survival outcomes after resection of HCC than the HBV/HCV-related or pure nBnC-HCC patients.
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Kiyohiko Omichi and Junichi Shindoh have equally contributed to this work.
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Omichi, K., Shindoh, J., Yamamoto, S. et al. Postoperative Outcomes for Patients with Non-B Non-C Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Subgroup Analysis of Patients with a History of Hepatitis B Infection. Ann Surg Oncol 22 (Suppl 3), 1034–1040 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-015-4845-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-015-4845-0