MICROBIOLOGICAL LINK BETWEEN HEPATITIS VIRUSES AND LIVER CANCER FORMATION

Abstract

This paper discusses how viral hepatitis, especially hepatitis B and hepatitis C, may gradually lead to liver cancer in many patients. In real life, a lot of people carry these viruses for many years without obvious symptoms, while inside the liver serious changes slowly take place. The infection causes long-term inflammation, fibrosis and eventually cirrhosis, and this condition creates a background for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. In the article I have summarized how these viruses integrate into liver cells, change normal protective processes and influence the microbiological environment inside the liver. Some of the key mechanisms are viral protein activity (like HBx), changes in immune reactions, and disruption of cellular gene regulation.