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Letter to the Editor
©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Hepatol. Dec 27, 2024; 16(12): 1515-1523
Published online Dec 27, 2024. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v16.i12.1515
Hepatitis B virus-induced cirrhosis: Mechanisms, global variations, and treatment advances
Jun-Ya Cheng, Guan-Yue Shan, Hui Wan, Yi-Ying Liu, Yu-Xin Zhang, Wen-Na Shi, Hai-Jun Li
Jun-Ya Cheng, Department of Bioengineering, Pharmacy School of Jilin University, Changchun 130061, Jilin Province, China
Guan-Yue Shan, Hui Wan, Yi-Ying Liu, Yu-Xin Zhang, Wen-Na Shi, Institute of Translational Medicine, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130061, Jilin Province, China
Hai-Jun Li, Institute of Liver Diseases, Institute of Translational Medicine, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130061, Jilin Province, China
Author contributions: Cheng JY, Wan H, Shan GY and Shi WN collected the information; Zhang YX and Liu YY drew and modified the illustrations; Cheng JY wrote the paper; Li HJ revised the paper.
Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81970529; and the Natural Science Foundation of Jilin Province, No. 20230508074RC and No. YDZJ202401218ZYTS.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Corresponding author: Hai-Jun Li, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Institute of Liver Diseases, Institute of Translational Medicine, The First Hospital of Jilin University, No. 71 Xinmin Street, Changchun 130061, Jilin Province, China. hjli2012@jlu.edu.cn
Received: July 28, 2024
Revised: October 3, 2024
Accepted: October 24, 2024
Published online: December 27, 2024
Processing time: 124 Days and 1.4 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: Understanding the global variation in hepatitis B virus-induced cirrhosis highlights the complex interplay between viral factors, host genetics, and environmental influences. Cirrhosis due to chronic hepatitis B virus (CHB) infection results from a cascade of fibrosis processes driven by persistent viral replication and immune-mediated hepatocyte injury. Over time, evolving antiviral treatment strategies have transformed from interferon-based therapies to nucleos(t)ide analogs, such as tenofovir, which effectively inhibit viral replication and attenuate liver injury. Future research should focus on elucidating new therapeutic targets to improve treatment efficacy and reduce the global burden of cirrhosis associated with CHB infection.