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Hepatitis B viral loads in southern African Blacks with hepatocellular carcinoma
Author(s) -
Viana Raquel,
Wang Renwei,
Yu Mimi C.,
Welschinger Robert,
Chen ChienYu,
Kew Michael C.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of medical virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1096-9071
pISSN - 0146-6615
DOI - 10.1002/jmv.21574
Subject(s) - hepatocellular carcinoma , viral load , asymptomatic , medicine , virology , viral hepatitis , population , asymptomatic carrier , hepatitis b virus , genotype , antigen , hepatitis c virus , carcinoma , virus , gastroenterology , immunology , biology , gene , genetics , environmental health
Although viral loads are known to influence the development of hepatitis B virus‐induced hepatocellular carcinoma in a number of populations, little information is available in the Black African population. Black African patients with hepatocellular carcinoma differ from those in other populations in having a lower frequency of e antigen‐positivity and in other respects that might affect viral loads. Hepatitis B viral loads were measured using real‐time polymerase chain reaction assay in 124 Black Africans with hepatocellular carcinoma and compared with those in 125 Black adult asymptomatic viral carriers. The geometric mean viral load in the cancer patients was 553,618 copies/ml (95% CI 301,953–1,015,033 copies/ml), with 62.1% having loads >1 × 10 5 copies/ml and 87.1% >1 × 10 4 copies/ml, whereas that in the carriers was 16,084 copies/ml (95% CI 9,184–28,168 copies/ml), with only 15.2% having values >1 × 10 5 copies/ml and 49.6% >1 × 10 4 copies/ml ( P < 0.001 in each instance). Mean viral load was significantly higher in e antigen‐positive than e antigen‐negative cancer patients (5,905,357 copies/ml [1,362,847–25,588,520] cf 238,173 copies/ml [97,200–685,730]: P < 0.001) after adjusting for age and sex. No statistically significant difference existed between patients in different age groups, in men and women, or in patients infected with genotype A or D after adjusting for the other variables. Conclusion: Black Africans with hepatocellular carcinoma have high hepatitis B viral loads in spite of the relative infrequency of e antigen‐positivity. J. Med. Virol. 81:1525–1530, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.