Role of Occult Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the Etiology and Prognosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

• Main Authors: Chuo-Shih Chen, 陳卓士
• Other Authors: Ming-Whei Yu
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2010
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/53528498308310341334

碩士 === 臺灣大學 === 流行病學研究所 === 98 === Background & Aims: Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has been implicated in the etiology of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The specific aims of this study were to 1) estimate the prevalence of occult HBV infection in major etiological groups of HCC patients, 2) identify factors associated with occult HBV infection in HCC patients, and 3) assess the association of occult HBV infection with clinical features at hospital admission and survival. Methods: Study subjects included 420 hepatitis B surface antigen-negative HCC patients. They were grouped into different classes according to the status of antibodies against hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) and the intensity and duration of alcohol consumption. We detected HBV DNA in circulation by a nested-polymerase chain reaction with primers designed based on the sequences of the surface(S) and X regions of HBV. Results: Overall, 90 (21.4%) patients were positive for HBs DNA, 46 (11.0%) tested positive for HBx DNA, and 64 (15.2%) tested positive for both HBs DNA and HBx DNA. While anti-HCV positive patients had a lower prevalence of occult HBV infection than anti-HCV negative patients (P=0.01), males had a higher prevalence than females (P=0.0374). Serum α-fetoprotein levels and tumor size were positively correlated with occult HBV infection. However, we failed to detect a significant association between occult HBV infection and survival after adjustment for potential prognostic factors. Conclusions: Occult HBV infection was more frequently detected in non-B, non-C HCC patients than in HBsAg-negative, anti-HCV-positive patients with HCC, and was more prevalent in male HCC patients than in female HCC patients. This infection may be associated with a more severe stage of HCC.