[Hepatocellular carcinogenesis and prognosis of elderly patients with chronic hepatitis type C].
Among 457 elderly patients of 65 years or older with chronic hepatitis or cirrhosis caused by hepatitis C virus, 117 patients underwent interferon therapy for the elimination of hepatitis C virus. A total of 87 patients could be analyzed for the interferon effect, since the remaining 20 patients had still been receiving or just finished the therapy. Thirty-six patients(41.4%) achieved complete elimination of HCV-RNA with interferon therapy. Although those patients with a milder hepatitis stage and better virological condition(low viral concentration or group 2 subtype) were preferentially enrolled in the therapy, 13 patients(11.1%) discontinued the administration with varied side effects: severe general malaise in 6 patients, depression in 3, pneumonia/pneumonitis in 2, and retinopathy in 2. Crude hepatocellular carcinogenesis rates in the subgroup of F1 + F2 and the subgroup of F3 + F4 were 1.8%, 21.2% at the end of 5th year, and 14.3% and 53.7% at the tenth year, respectively.
Ikeda
K
K
Department of Gastroenterology, Toranomon Hospital.
Arase
Y
Y
Kumada
H
H
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D007372:Interferons / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D011379:Prognosis
D007372:Interferons