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Hepatitis B core-related antigen predicts disease progression and hepatocellular carcinoma in hepatitis B e

Shun Kaneko1, Masayuki Kurosaki1, Kento Inada1

  • 1Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Musashino Red Cross Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.

Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
|May 31, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Hepatitis B core-related antigen (HBcrAg) levels predict hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. Higher HBcrAg indicates increased HCC development risk, especially in HBeAg-negative patients on therapy.

Area of Science:

  • Hepatology
  • Virology
  • Oncology

Background:

  • Serum hepatitis B core-related antigen (HBcrAg) serves as a surrogate marker for intrahepatic covalently closed circular DNA activity in chronic hepatitis B (CHB).
  • Understanding HBcrAg's role is crucial for managing CHB and predicting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the virological characteristics of HBcrAg in CHB patients.
  • To identify HCC risk factors in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-negative CHB patients.

Main Methods:

  • HBcrAg levels were measured in 245 nucleoside/nucleotide analog (NA)-naive CHB patients before therapy.
  • Patients received continuous NA therapy for over a year; viral status was compared between HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative groups.

Main Results:

  • Median HBcrAg levels were significantly higher in HBeAg-positive versus HBeAg-negative patients.
  • In HBeAg-negative patients, elevated HBcrAg correlated with cirrhosis and higher HBV DNA levels.
  • Higher HBcrAg levels at one year independently predicted HCC development in HBeAg-negative patients on NA therapy.

Conclusions:

  • HBcrAg is valuable for assessing CHB disease progression.
  • HBcrAg aids in stratifying carcinogenesis risk among HBeAg-negative CHB patients undergoing NA therapy.
Abstract

Keywords:
Hepatitis B core-related antigen (HBcrAg)Hepatitis B virus (HBV)Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)Nucleoside/nucleotide analogs (NAs)

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