Effect of postoperative anti-viral therapy using lamivudine on recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with active HBV replication

Objective To investigate the effect of postoperative anti-viral therapy using lamivudine on recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with active HBV replication.Methods Forty-one HCC patients with high serum HBVDNA level (＞ 105 copies/ml) undergoing radical hepatectomy were randomized into two groups. The patients in group Ⅰ (n=20) received hepatectomy alone while those in group Ⅱ (n=21) received postoperative lamivudine therapy. Another 22 HBVDNA-negative (＜500 copies/ml) HCC patients receiving hepatectomy in the same period of time were employed to serve as negative contract group ( Ⅲ ). The serum levels of HBVDNA and ALT, HBeAg seroconversion rate, tumor recurrence rate were observed and compared by SPSS software. Results In Group Ⅰ and Group Ⅱ , the 1-year HBVDNA suppression rate was 76.2% vs 15%(P＜0.01) and HBeAg seroconversion rate 45.5% vs. 22.2% (P＞0.05). The median recurrence time was 20 vs. 11 months (P＜0. 001). The tumor recurrence rate in Group Ⅰ , Ⅲ and Ⅲ was 50%, 28.98% and 22.73% ,respectively. There was significant difference between Group Ⅰ and Ⅱ but no marked difference between Group Ⅱ and Ⅲ. Conclusions Lamivudine therapy may play an important role in suppressing the HBV and delaying the recurrence of HCC in patients with active HBV replication. Key words: Carcinoma hepatocellular; Neoplasm recurrence; HBVDNA; Lamivudine