Relative contribution of hepatitis B and C viruses in primary liver cancer in China: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES

China, which has the largest number of patients with primary liver cancer (PLCs), lacks data on the overall prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in PLCs. We aimed to comprehensively assess the seroprevalence of HBV and HCV among PLCs in China.

METHODS

We included and pooled observational studies reporting seroprevalence of HBsAg and anti-HCV antibodies among PLCs in China by searching PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, Scopus, Embase, CNKI, Wanfang, and CBM. Multivariate meta-regression and subgroup analyses were used to explore sources of heterogeneity, and publication bias was assessed by funnel plots and Egger's test. PROSPERO registration number is CRD42023450382.

RESULTS

A total of 217 eligible studies were included in the meta-analysis. The estimated seroprevalence of HBV and HCV in PLCs was 75.09% (95% CI 73.12-77.02) and 11.82% (95% CI 9.79-14.00), respectively. After stratifying and analysing subgroups by region and study period, we found geographic differences in HBV and HCV prevalence among PLCs, with an overall increasing trend in the proportion of HBV and a decreasing trend in the proportion of HCV as well as co-infections in the last 40 years.

CONCLUSIONS

HBV and HCV infections still account for a high proportion of PLCs in China.