Hepatitis B Core Antibody Positivity Associated with Increased Risk of Liver Cancer in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C: Analysis of a Large Patient Cohort in Hawai'i.

Chronic hepatitis C infection is a major cause of liver cancer in the United States. Hawai'i's incidence of liver cancer consistently ranks among the highest in the US, due in part to the high prevalence of hepatitis B in the state. To better understand the factors associated with liver cancer among patients in Hawai'i with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, the patient database of Kaiser Permanente's Hawai'i region was used to identify a cohort of 3198 patients with a history of chronic HCV infection, of whom 159 (5%) were diagnosed with liver cancer between the years 2004-2020.

Aortitis in an Immunocompetent Host.

is a commensal organism of canine and feline oral flora known to cause severe infections most frequently reported in immunocompromised hosts. We describe a case of bacterial aortitis secondary to in an 80-year-old immunocompetent female, who presented with fever, non-specific lower back, and pelvic pain. Infection was confirmed with positive blood cultures and serial imaging.