Journal of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (Mar 2023)
Perspectives on the Underlying Etiology of HCC and Its Effects on Treatment Outcomes
Abstract
Takanori Ito,1 Mindie H Nguyen2,3 1Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan; 2Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, CA, USA; 3Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, CA, USACorrespondence: Mindie H Nguyen, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, and Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Stanford University Medical Center, 780 Welch Road, CJ250K, Palo Alto, CA, 94304, USA, Tel +1 650-498-6084, Fax +1 650-498-5692, Email [email protected]: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) continues to be a serious medical problem with poor prognosis worldwide. The distribution of the major etiologies of HCC is changing due to the progress of anti-viral treatments, including hepatitis B virus (HBV) suppression by nucleoside/nucleotide analogues (NAs) and increased sustained virologic response (SVR) rates by direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) for hepatitis C virus (HCV), as well as the rising trend of nonviral liver disease. Although viral hepatitis remains the most common cause of HCC, non-alcoholic liver disease (NAFLD) with metabolic syndrome and alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) are increasing. Effective and well-tolerated NAs treatment can slow the disease progression of chronic HBV infection to cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, and reduce HCC risk. Treatment with NAs is also associated with significant improvement in the long-term survival of patients with HBV infection who already have HCC. DAAs have achieved viral elimination in almost all patients with HCV without significant adverse events, even in patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis and HCC. Similarly, DAA therapy can reduce disease progression, liver and non-liver complications, and improve the long-term survival of patients with chronic HCV infection with or without HCC. Meanwhile, NAFLD is a rapidly increasing cause of HCC along with the epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes globally. NAFLD-related HCC can occur in patients without cirrhosis and is known to have a lower survival rate than viral hepatitis-related HCC. Since there is currently no specific pharmacotherapy effective for NAFLD, lifestyle modification and prevention of complications are important to improve prognosis. Additionally, ALD is the second fastest-growing cause of HCC-related deaths, especially with an accelerated trend since the COVID-19 pandemic. This review provides an overview of the epidemiologic trends in the etiologies of HCC, and the progress of treatments for each etiology and the impact on outcome in the patients with HCC.Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma, etiology, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcohol-associated liver disease
