Hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis C: Experience gained at Clinical Center of Vojvodina

Introduction. The incidence of chronic hepatitis C and its consequences, liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma is growing rapidly. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical characteristics of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and chronic hepatitis C treated at the Clinical Centre of Vojvodina and therapy options. Material and Methods. This retrospective study included 51 patients (52.9% male and 47.1% female) with chronic hepatitis C and hepatocellular carcinoma treated between 2000 and 2014. The average age of patients was 61.6 years (SD=10.8) and the average duration of hepatitis C virus infection was 30.2 years (SD=11.7). All patients had liver cirrhosis and 43.1% had previously been treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin. According to the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer criteria, stadium A, B, C and D were found in 15.7%, 52.3%, 19.6% and 11.8% of the patients, respectively. The average value of alpha fetoprotein at the moment of making diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma was 397.56 ng/ml and the level of alpha fetoprotein was below 20mg/ml in 26% of patients. Tumor resection, radiofrequency ablation, chemoembolization, systemic chemotherapy and liver transplantation were performed in 13.7%, 3.9%, 1.9%, 1.9% and 5.9% of patients, respectively. Average survival time after the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma among patients included in the study was 1.39 (SD=1.61) years. Conclusion. Ultrasound examinations of the patients with liver cirrhosis caused by hepatitis C virus infection are obligatory every 3 months. Etiology of every focal lesion in the liver must be clarified, which could increase the possibility of administration of available therapeutic methods.