Hepatitis B virus infection and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is a devastating malignant tumor arising from the peripheral intrahepatic bile ductepithelium. The incidence and mortality of ICC is markedly increasing over the past two decades worldwide, though the cause for this rise in incidence is unclear, thus intensifying the search for alternative etiological agents and pathogenetic mechanisms. Hepatolithiasis, primary sclerosing cholangitis, parasitic infection ( Opisthorchis viverrinior Clonorchis sinensis), fibropolycystic liver disease, and chemical carcinogen exposure are thought to be the risk factorsfor ICC. Nevertheless, the majority of ICC patients do not have any of these risk factors, and none of the established risk factorscan explain the recent increasing trend of ICC. Therefore, identifying other risk factorsmay lead to the prevention and early detection of ICC. Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the predominant cause of hepatocellular carcinoma in HBV-endemic areas. This review discusses the evidence implicating chronic HBV infection as a likely etiology of ICC and the pathogenetic mechanisms that might be involved.