Entecavir versus tenofovir on prognosis of hepatitis B virus‐related hepatocellular carcinoma after curative hepatectomy

Summary Background There is still controversy about whether tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) have different effects on the outcomes of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)‐related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Aims The aim of this study was to compare the prognoses between ETV and TDF treatment among patients with HBV‐related HCC after hepatectomy. Methods An analysis was done on data from the Taiwan Cancer Registry, which was linked to Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database, for the years 2011–2016. We identified 7107 patients with HBV‐related HCC after curative hepatectomy, and 25.3% of them used ETV or TDF after surgery. After propensity score overlap weighting, 1797 patients treated with ETV ( n = 1365) or TDF ( n = 432) were included for analyses. Cox proportional hazards models were used to compare the efficacy of ETV and TDF for recurrence and overall survival (OS). Results After hepatectomy, the recurrence rate per 100 person‐years was 14.87 for the ETV group and 9.25 for the TDF group. The risk of recurrence was similar in the TDF group and the ETV group (HR [95% CI]: 0.91 [0.69–1.19; p = 0.479]), as was the risk of all‐cause mortality (HR [95% CI]: 0.67 [0.42–1.07]; p = 0.091). When considering early recurrence (<2 years) and late recurrence (≧2 years), the TDF and ETV groups showed no significant differences. Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses demonstrated consistent results. Conclusion Both TDF and ETV showed similar health benefits in terms of recurrence and OS in patients with HBV‐related HCC patients after hepatectomy.