HBE1 and neoplasm: Although the low levels of HBV replication may be explained by the fact that these patients were all anti-HBe positive and under antiviral therapy with nucleos(t)ide analogues prior to surgery, the dramatic and significant decrease in HBsAg expression within the tumor cannot be explained by antiviral therapy, because nucleos(t)ide analogues have no direct effect on transcription and translation of HBsAg, which was not suppressed in the tumor-surrounding tissue.