Incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma reduced by phlebotomy treatment in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the impact of phlebotomy on the laboratory values and the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with hepatitis C.


METHODS
Study patients with chronic hepatitis C were treated with glycyrrhizin injection and oral ursodeoxycholic acid and either with (n=52) or without (n=50) phlebotomy during the period of 2005-2012. Six phlebotomized patients had previously received interferon therapy and were subsequently excluded from the data analysis. The serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), total bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, iron and albumin, as well as the hemoglobin concentration, platelet count and prothrombin time, were determined. We compared the long-term outcomes based on the incidence of HCC and laboratory values, including the baseline serum ferritin levels, in patients treated with versus without phlebotomy.


RESULTS
In the phlebotomy group, the mean AST and ALT levels decreased significantly at each one-year interval over five years (p<0.01), whereas the platelet counts did not. The incidence of HCC in the phlebotomized patients was significantly lower than that observed in the patients treated without phlebotomy: 10.3% vs. 43.7%, respectively, during the 8-year observation period (p=0.04). The incidence of HCC was also lower in the phlebotomized patients with a normal baseline ferritin level: 0.0% vs. 36.0% in the matched subgroup treated without phlebotomy at year 8. Phlebotomy offered a risk ratio of 0.13, thus suggesting protection against the development of HCC.


CONCLUSIONS
The incidence of HCC can be reduced by phlebotomy treatment, which should be performed in patients with chronic hepatitis C not receiving or not responding to antiviral therapy.
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nihon University School of Medicine, Japan.
Kazushige
K
Nirei
Shuniti
S
Matsuoka
Hitomi
H
Nakamura
Hiroshi
H
Matsumura
Mitsuhiko
M
Moriyama
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D019695:Glycyrrhizic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018962:Phlebotomy / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010976:Platelet Count; D014580:Ursodeoxycholic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage
D016898:Interferon-alpha; D019695:Glycyrrhizic Acid; D014580:Ursodeoxycholic Acid; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase