Hepatocellular carcinoma and hepatitis C virus treatments: The bold and the beautiful

The occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most serious complications of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Recently, effective antiviral medications have made sustained viral response (SVR) or cure a realistic therapeutic goal for most chronic HCV patients. Given HCV's tumorigenic propensity, it is not surprising that achieving SVR is helpful in preventing HCC. This review briefly summarizes and discusses the existing evidence on the relationship between hepatic carcinogenesis and viral eradication by antivirals, which is mainly divided into interferon-based and direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) based therapy. DAAs have changed the treatment landscape of chronic HCV, reaching high rates of SVR even in patients with advanced cirrhosis, with few contraindications and little side effects. Although some early reports suggested that DAA treatment increased the chance of HCC occurrence, more subsequent observational studies have refuted this theory. The probability of HCC recurrence after HCV eradication appears to be decreasing over time following SVR. Despite virological suppression/cure, individuals with liver cirrhosis are still at risk of HCC and should be monitored. There is a considerable need for markers/scores to predict the long-term risk of HCC in patients with HCV-related liver disease who attain SVR with direct-acting antivirals.