Addition of nucleoside analogues to peg-IFNα-2a enhances virological response in chronic hepatitis B patients without early response to peg-IFNα-2a: a randomized controlled trial

Predictive factors for clinical cure in the treatment of HBeAg(-) chronic hepatitis B or compensated cirrhosis: a prospective observational study

Background

Sequential or combined treatment with nucleos(t)ide analogs (NAs) and pegylated interferon alpha-2b (Peg-IFN-α-2b) can improve the clinical cure rate. However, its clinical application is limited due to the adverse reactions associated with IFN.

Methods

A multi-center prospective observational study was conducted involving 59 NAs-treated chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients who were treated with a combination therapy of NAs and Peg-IFN-α-2b for 48 weeks. Another 327 NAs-treated patients received NAs monotherapy for 48 weeks. At the end of the treatment, patients were classified into either the clinically cured group or the non-clinically cured group based on clinical efficacy. The study aimed to analyze the clinical cure rate and the predictive factors.

Results

After propensity score matching (PSM), a total of 104 patients were included in the exposure and the control groups. After 48 weeks of treatment, 13 patients in the exposed group achieved clinical cure, with a cure rate of 25%. In contrast, in the control group was 1.92%. The clinical cure rate was greater in the population with CHB or compensated cirrhosis treated with sequential or combined Peg-IFN-α-2b and NAs than in the control group (p < 0.001). Patients treated with Peg-IFN-α-2b were divided into a clinical cure group and a non-clinical cure group for single-factor regression and multi-factor binary logistic regression. The results showed that baseline qHBsAg [relative ratio (RR) = 0.997, 95%CI: [0.995, 0.999], p = 0.031] and △TBiL (RR = 0.698, 95%CI: [0.555, 0.879], p = 0.002) were independent influencing factors for achieving clinical cure in patients with CHB or compensated cirrhosis.

Conclusion

A lower baseline qHBsAg and decrease in TBiL at 24 weeks of treatment are independent influencing factors for achieving clinical cure. The lower the baseline qHBsAg and the higher the △TBiL levels after 24 weeks of treatment, the higher the probability of patients achieving clinical cure.

Interferon therapy improves survival in patients with hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma after curative surgery: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIM

A novel study found interferon enhanced antitumor activity of anti-PD-1-based immunotherapy and played a crucial role in improving efficacy on HCC, but the opposite results about the efficacy of interferon on HBV-related HCC were obtained from previous clinical studies and meta-analyses. Thus, this meta-analysis aimed to re-evaluate whether interferon could improve survival and reduce recurrence of patients with HBV-related HCC after curative surgery.

METHODS

MEDLINE/PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Web of Science and CNKI were searched for eligible studies from inception to November 2022 and a meta-analysis was done.

RESULTS

10 trials with a total of 2062 subjects were screened. Interferon significantly improved 1-, 2-, 3- and 5-year OS and 1-, 2- and 3-year DFS, and reduced 2-, 3- and 5-year recurrence rates of patients with HBV-related HCC after curative surgery. However, interferon did not improve 8-year OS and 5-year DFS, did not reduce 1-year recurrence rate.

CONCLUSIONS

Interferon may significantly reduce recurrence and improve DFS of patients with HBV-related HCC after curative surgery, and finally improve the OS. However, the efficacy advantage may gradually weaken as time goes on. The clinical application of interferon combined with NAs recommended in this meta-analysis is needed to be further studied.

The effectiveness of combination therapy with interferon and nucleoside analogs in pediatric patients with chronic hepatitis B: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

It is a challenging issue regarding the optimal antiviral treatment of children with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The efficacy comparison of interferon (IFN) or nucleos(t)ide analogs (NAs) monotherapy with their combination could better understand this issue.

METHODS

PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Wanfang, CNKI, and abstracts of major international hepatology meetings were searched from inception to Feb 8, 2022. Randomized control trials and observational studies reporting the efficacy of combination therapy with IFN and NAs in children with CHB were eligible.

RESULTS

A total of 17 studies were included. Compared with IFN monotherapy, combination therapy with IFN and NAs was significantly associated with increased rates of HBV DNA undetectable, HBeAg clearance, HBeAg seroconversion, alanine transaminase (ALT) normalization as well as the composite treatment response both at the end of treatment and during the follow-up period (RRs ranged from 1.23 to 1.75). A favorable trend for HBsAg seroconversion was found in IFN plus NAs-treated children, but not for the HBsAg clearance at the end of treatment. Although a similar trend towards the superiority of the combination therapy versus NAs monotherapy was observed (RRs ranged from 1.24 to 2.33) except for the HBV DNA undetectable rate at the end of treatment, the number of reported studies was limited.

CONCLUSIONS

Combination therapy with IFN and NAs is more effective than IFN monotherapy in viral suppression and serological response for children with CHB. More studies were still needed to reveal the efficacy of this combination therapy compared with NAs monotherapy.

Effect of combination treatment based on interferon and nucleos(t)ide analogues on functional cure of chronic hepatitis B: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Priority of antiviral treatment for patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is to increase the probability of functional cure. We aimed to synthesize evidence regarding the efficacy of different combination strategies of antiviral treatment based on interferon (IFN) and nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) in adults with CHB.

METHODS

PubMed, Web of Science and Embase databases were searched from inception to May 26, 2019. Three types of combination strategies were studied: initial combination (IFN or NAs monotherapy as control), add-on (I: IFN add-on NAs vs. NAs; II: NAs add-on IFN vs. IFN), switch-to (I: IFN switch-to NAs vs. IFN; II: NAs switch-to IFN vs. NAs).

RESULTS

Compared to NAs monotherapy, initial combination strategy improved the probability of HBeAg loss (RR: 1.62, 95% CI 1.33-1.97) and HBsAg loss (RR: 15.59, 95% CI 3.22-75.49), while compared to IFN monotherapy, no higher rates in the loss of HBsAg or HBeAg for initial combination. Compared to NAs monotherapy, IFN add-on NAs strategy had a higher rate of HBsAg loss (RR: 4.52, 95% CI 1.95-10.47), while compared to IFN monotherapy, NAs add-on IFN had a similar outcome. Compared to NAs monotherapy, NAs switch-to IFN strategy improved HBsAg loss (RR: 12.15, 95% CI 3.99-37.01); while compared to IFN monotherapy, IFN switch-to NAs had no improved rate of HBsAg clearance but higher rates in undetectable HBV DNA, and HBeAg loss.

CONCLUSION

IFN add-on NAs, or NAs switched to IFN could significantly improve the probability of HBsAg loss compared to NAs monotherapy.

A comparative network meta-analysis of standard of care treatments in treatment-naïve chronic hepatitis B patients

Objective: Published network meta-analyses of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) treatments are either out-of-date or excluded key treatments. Therefore, we aimed to comprehensively update the efficacy evidence for the following end points: Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss, hepatitis B early antigen (HBeAg) seroconversion and hepatitis B virus DNA (HBV DNA) suppression. Materials & methods: Approved treatments in CHB and their combinations were evaluated. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify all randomized controlled trials in treatment-naïve CHB patients. Included studies reported at least one of the end points of interest. A frequentist probability network meta-analysis was performed for each end point. The choice of fixed effect or random-effect model was based on the I-square statistic, a measure of variation in study outcomes between studies. The analyses were performed separately for HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. For the primary analyses, end points measured 48 ± 4 weeks after treatment initiation were considered. Results: A total of 47 randomized controlled trials (13,826 patients), covering 23 unique treatment regimens, were included: a total of 29 reported HBsAg loss, 36 reported HBeAg seroconversion and 37 reported HBV DNA suppression. For both HBsAg loss and HBeAg seroconversion, pegylated interferon-based regimens were the most effective strategy in both HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. On the other hand, for HBV DNA suppression, nucleosides-based regimens were the most effective strategy in both HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. Conclusion: Our findings confirm available evidence around the comparative efficacy of available CHB treatments. Therefore, they can be used to update relevant cost-effectiveness analyses and clinical guidelines.

The efficacy of addition of Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate to Peg-IFNα-2b is superior to the addition of Entecavir in HBeAg positive CHB patients with a poor response after 12 weeks of Peg-IFNα-2b treatment alone

Background: There are limited data regarding the efficacy of addition of entecavir (ETV) or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) to Peg-IFNα-2b in HBeAg positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients without early response to Peg-IFNα-2b. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy of ETV and TDF in HBeAg positive CHB patients who had a poor response to Peg-INFα-2b at the end of 12 weeks of monotherapy. Methods: A total of 40 HBeAg-positive CHB patients who were naive to antiviral therapy were recruited. The patients received a subcutaneous injection of Peg-IFNα-2b (180 µg) once a week for 12 weeks. However, the patients had a poor response to Peg-INFα-2b at the end of the 12-week-period monotherapy. The patients were then divided into two therapeutic protocol groups: (1) Group A: Patients received Peg-IFNα-2b (180 µg) subcutaneously weekly and ETV (0.5 mg) orally once daily for 48 weeks; (2) Group B: Patients received Peg-IFNα-2b (180 µg) subcutaneously weekly and TDF (300 mg) orally once daily for 48 weeks. The therapeutic efficacy was evaluated. Blood samples were collected at baseline and every 12 weeks. Routine biochemical tests including ALT, AST, etc. were measured by automated biochemical technique. HBV DNA was quantified using the TaqMan PCR assay. The levels of HBsAg, HBsAb, HBeAg, HBeAb and HBcAb were measured using a commercial chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. Results: The HBsAg level declined rapidly in both two treatment groups during the first 12 weeks and declined gradually in the next 36 weeks. At week 48, the mean ΔHBsAg level in Peg-IFNα-2b+TDF group was significantly higher than that in Peg-IFNα-2b +ETV group (-1.799 ± 0.3063 vs. -1.078 ± 0.2028, P=0.0491). The HBeAg loss rate was significantly higher in TDF add-on group than that in ETV add-on group at week 48 (40% vs. 10%, P=0.028). At week 48, the proportions of patients with undetectable HBV DNA (<500 IU/mL) were 80% (16 out of 20) and 95% (19 out of 20) in Peg-IFNα-2b+ETV group and Peg-IFNα-2b+TDF group, respectively. Conclusions: This real world study demonstrated that the efficacy of addition of TDF to Peg-IFNα-2b is superior to the efficacy of addition of ETV to Peg-IFNα-2b in HBeAg positive CHB patients with a poor response after 12 weeks of Peg-IFNα-2b treatment alone. However, this present study also requires a larger sample size study to verify in the future.

Combined effect of pegylated interferon α with adefovir on renal function in Chinese patients with chronic hepatitis B

BACKGROUND

Long-term safety of treatment with hepatitis B virus (HBV) polymerase inhibitors is a concern. Adefovir dipivoxil (ADV) and/or interferon alfa (IFN-α) therapies have previously been associated with impairment of renal function. Limited data are available on the safety of combination therapy with nucleos (t)ide analogues (NAs) and IFN-α. The aim of this analysis was to assess the renal function during combined therapy with pegylated interferon α-2b (PEG-IFN-α-2b) and ADV versus PEG-IFN-α-2b alone in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

METHODS

We performed a multicenter, prospective, open-label, randomized-controlled trial of renal function data to investigate the efficacy of 48 weeks of therapy with PEG-IFN-α-2b and ADV versus PEG-IFN-α-2b alone in 102 patients with CHB in Anhui, China. Glomerular filtration rates (GFRs) were calculated by Cockcroft-Gault (CG), abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) study, and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equation, and were tested by repeated-measures 1-way analysis of variance within groups. A linear mixed effects model for repeated measures was also used to evaluate the association between baseline information and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) changes overtime in all enrolled patients. The model considered the baseline age, sex, HBV DNA, aminotransferase, treatment group, time, and group-by-time interaction as fixed effects and incorporated random effects for individual subjects.

RESULTS

After 48 weeks of therapy and further 24 weeks of follow-up, the eGFR decreased both in patients given PEG-IFN-α-2b single therapy and combined therapy. Age, HBV DNA, and combined therapy were significant negative predictive factors for eGFR changes.

CONCLUSION

The incidence of renal adverse events in both groups was low, and the combination therapy may have delayed, but reversible renal impairment.