The influence of direct-acting antivirals in hepatitis C virus related hepatocellular carcinoma after curative treatment

This study was done to elucidate the influence of direct-acting antiviral (DAA) agents on the recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related HCC (HCV-HCC) after curative therapies. HCV-HCC patients who received curative therapies and obtained a complete response were analyzed. From January 2017 to September 2017, 112 HCV-HCC patients received DAA and obtained a sustained virological response (SVR). From January 2006 to December 2014, another 345 HCV-HCC patients received peg-interferon-based treatment and 118 obtained SVR. From January 2012 to December 2016, 248 HCV-HCC patients had complete HCC response and did not receive antiviral treatment. Patients were divided into DAA, IFN, and Untreated groups based on what antiviral treatment they received. There were 82 patients in the DAA group, 80 patients in the IFN group, and 160 patients in the Untreated group. During the follow-up period, the DAA group had 22 (26.8%) recurrent cases, whereas the IFN group had 46 (56.8%) cases after antiviral treatment. Among the 22 recurrent cases in the DAA group, 19 (86.9%) experienced HCC recurrence during 1 year after DAA initiation. Compared with the IFN group, the DAA group had poorer one-year recurrence-free survival (75.4% vs. 95%, p < 0.001), even after adjustment with propensity score matching (81.4% vs. 93.9%, p = 0.034). However, DAA was an improving factor for HCC recurrence compared with the Untreated group in the multivariate analysis. Among HCV-HCC patients with complete treatment, those with DAA-induced SVR had a higher one-year recurrence rate than those who received IFN-based antiviral therapy, but DAA did not seem to increase HCC recurrence compared to untreated patients.