Whether antiviral therapy can reduce the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic HCV infection

In 2010, studies found that achievement of sustained virologic response after treatment in patients with chronic HCV infection meant cure; the overall cure rate of interferon combined with ribavirin around the world was about 60%, and the result of real-world study in China was 71. 1%. In 2013, the US took the lead in launching the direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) for HCV, and the cure rate was increased to almost 100%. However, recent studies have found that the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tends to increase after the application of DAAs, and there are still controversies over whether DAAs are the major cause of this phenomenon. In our opinion, this phenomenon is caused by the fact that the indications for DAAs cover more end-stage hepatitis C patients who are intrinsically the high-risk population of HCC; however, it cannot be excluded that DAAs may lead to the change in the body's antitumor immune status. Studies are needed in the future to examine this issue at the molecular level.