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Long‐term interferon therapy for 1 year or longer reduces the hepatocellular carcinogenesis rate in patients with liver cirrhosis caused by hepatitis C virus: A pilot study
Author(s) -
Ikeda Kenji,
Saitoh Satoshi,
Kobayashi Masahiro,
Suzuki Yoshiyuki,
Suzuki Fumitaka,
Tsubota Akihito,
Arase Yasuji,
Murashima Naoya,
Chayama Kazuaki,
Kumada Hiromitsu
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of gastroenterology and hepatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.214
H-Index - 130
eISSN - 1440-1746
pISSN - 0815-9319
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1746.2001.02450.x
Subject(s) - medicine , cirrhosis , hepatocellular carcinoma , gastroenterology , interferon , hepatitis c virus , hazard ratio , hepatitis c , proportional hazards model , immunology , virus , confidence interval
Background and Methods: In order to elucidate the influence of a long‐term administration of interferon on the appearance rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐related cirrhosis, we retrospectively analyzed 694 patients with cirrhosis. A total of 113 patients underwent interferon therapy, including 25 patients with a long‐term administration of interferon for 1 year or more, and the other 581 patients received no antiviral drugs. Results: Crude cumulative appearance rates of HCC in the interferon and the untreated groups were 14.1, and 28.4% at the end of the 5th year, and 36.7 and 52.5% at the end of the 10th year, respectively ( P = 0.0028). As there was a waiting time between diagnosis and treatment (median 2.0 months, average 21.3 months) in the treated group, Cox proportional hazard analysis using a time‐dependent covariate was introduced to evaluate the anticarcinogenic effect of interferon. Although male sex, higher α‐fetoprotein, older age, lower albumin concentration, and lower platelet count significantly increased the carcinogenesis rate, interferon was not a significant contributing factor to the carcinogenesis rate as a whole (hazard ratio = 0.83, P = 0.32). When the patients with interferon were divided into two groups according to therapy duration, long‐term interferon therapy significantly decreased the hepatocellular carcinogenesis rate after an adjustment by significant covariates (hazard ratio = 0.28, P = 0.0048). Conclusion: When interferon is administered for 12 months or longer, effective cancer prevention will be achieved, even in patients with HCV‐related cirrhosis.