These data support a positive benefit/risk assessment for blockade of the PD-1:PD-L1 pathway in CHB patients and may help to identify patient groups most likely to benefit from treatment.
In this study, we investigated the dynamic expression of programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1), the ligand of PD-1, on circulating CD14<sup>+</sup> monocytes and CD19<sup>+</sup> B cells of HBV-infected patients at the stages of chronic HBV (CHB) infection, liver cirrhosis (LC), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), respectively.