Abstract
PURPOSE: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major cause of cancer mortality in sub-Saharan Africa, with most cases arising from chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. Despite Rwanda's national hepatitis guidelines recommending biannual surveillance with abdominal ultrasound (US) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) testing, the extent of adherence remains unknown. This study aimed to assess adherence to HCC surveillance guidelines among HBV- and HCV-infected patients at a national referral hospital in Rwanda.
METHODS: We conducted a retrospective descriptive study of HBV- and HCV-infected patients attending the Rwanda Military Referral and Teaching Hospital between January 2022 and December 2024. Surveillance adherence was assessed based on the proportion of time covered by abdominal US and AFP testing, with coverage categorized as optimal (100%), intermediate (50%-99%), or poor (<50%).
RESULTS: Among 388 patients (mean age, 41.9 years; 73.4% male), 82.7% were HBV-infected. Over one third (31.4%) and nearly half (44.6%) of the patients never received an US or AFP test, respectively. Only 15.5% achieved optimal US coverage, and 12.1% had optimal AFP coverage. Surveillance coverage was worse in patients age 31-50 years and those residing in Kigali. Paradoxically, patients from rural provinces demonstrated better adherence. Thirteen patients (3.4%) had liver lesions detected on US, although lesion status was undocumented in 44.6% of cases.
CONCLUSION: Adherence to HCC surveillance guidelines in Rwanda is suboptimal, with significant gaps across age groups and regions. These findings underscore the need for integrating HCC surveillance into routine hepatitis care and leveraging Rwanda's decentralized health system to improve early cancer detection.