Incidence and significance of hepatitis B e antigen and antibody in postnecrotic cirrhosis and primary hepatocellular carcinoma.

A study of the serological markers of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) including e antigen (HBe Ag) and antibody against HBe Ag (anti-HBe) was performed in Senegalese patients suffering from cirrhosis and primary hepatocellular carcinoma, and in a control group (blood donors). It was not possible to diagnose additional HBV infections in primary hepatocellular carcinoma patients using HBe Ag or anti-HBe Ab alone as serological markers. The lower prevalence of HBe Ag among primary hepatocellular carcinoma patients as compared with cirrhotic patients suggests that active replication of HBV becomes increasingly defective during the course of the malignant process.