A retrospective study of preoperative HBsAg levels predicting recurrence after curative resection in patients with HBV-associated hepatocellular carcinoma

This study aims to analyze the predictive value of preoperative hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) level in terms of recurrence after radical resection in treatment-naïve patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who have not received antiviral therapy. This study performed a retrospective analysis of the clinical data of 301 patients with or without high HbsAg levels who underwent partial hepatectomy for HCC. The primary end point of this study was relapse-free survival (RFS). After a follow-up period of 25.9 ± 16.3 months, recurrence was observed in 227 (75.4%) patients with HCC. Among all the patients, RFS was better for those with low serum level of HbsAg, and RFS was better for those who received postoperative antiviral therapy. And RFS was similar for patients who did not receive antiviral treatment no matter HbsAg level. High preoperative serum level of HBsAg was associated with poor RFS of HBV-related HCC. This finding suggest HBsAg as a predictor of short-term prognosis, as well as an indicator for follow-up in postoperative HBV-related HCC patients. In addition, postoperative antiviral therapy may improve prognosis of patients with HBV-associated HCC, with more significant benefits observed in patients with low preoperative serum HBsAg levels.