Virological and biochemical features in elderly HCV patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: amino acid substitutions in HCV core region as predictor of mortality after first treatment.

Aims: We showed previously that amino acid (aa) substitutions in HCV genotype 1b (HCV-1b) core region are negative predictors of virological response to peginterferon + ribavirin therapy, and also risk factors of hepatocarcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of core aa substitutions on mortality in elderly patients.
Methods: We compared the characteristics and survival of 92 elderly (> or =75 years) patients with HCV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (including 62 patients with HCV-1b) with those of 44 younger patients (<50 years, 34 patients with HCV-1b).
Results: For all patients, univariate analysis identified female sex, history of blood transfusion, preserved liver function and glucose metabolism as significant variables in the elderly patients. In patients with HCV-1b-related HCC, univariate analysis identified preserved lipid metabolism as significant variable in addition to significant variables in overall patients. In elderly patients with HCV-1b-related HCC, multivariate analysis identified male sex, methionine of core aa91, and non-radical therapy as factors that influenced mortality after first treatment for HCC.
Conclusions: Our results characterized elderly patients who develop HCC after HCV-1b infection, and suggested that aa substitutions of HCV-1b core region correlate with mortality of patients after first treatment for HCC.
(Copyright 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel.)