The Hepatitis C virus (HCV) has a major impact on public health and is thought to be responsible
for 25% of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 27% of cirrhosis cases worldwide.
Recent direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) for hepatitis C have the potential to reduce this disease
burden, but there are increased worries about HCC incidence in HCV patients receiving
DAAs. This work assessed the HCC incidence in HCV patients treated with DAAs and its relationship < br />to Hepatic Fibrosis Stage.
The study included 400 chronic HCV patients equally divided into two groups: chronic
HCV patients who did not receive anti HCV medication (control group) and chronic HCV patients
who received different DAAs treatment regimens. There was a highly significant difference
between both groups as regards hepatic fibrosis stages before DAAs therapy. The DAA
receiving group had highly statistically advanced hepatic fibrosis when compared to the control
group. After eighteen months of follow up, the DAA receiving group had a significantly
lower incidence of HCC when compared to the control group (5.5% versus 11% respectively,
p-value 0.04).