The burden of occult hepatitis B virus infection in hepatocellular carcinoma in Nigeria

The WHO guideline advocates for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) as the initial diagnostic test for hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. There are, however, patients who may have the persistence of viral DNA in the liver or blood despite having undetectable HBsAg; these patients also need to be accounted for, especially in endemic areas. These groups of patients are also at risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma, and they need to be identified. We advocate for funding to support projects and research centers that are able to detect occult HBV infection. This will be valuable in the reduction of the occult transmission of HBV and reactivation of quiescent HBV.