Deciphering Platelet Kinetics in Diagnostic and Prognostic Evaluation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Liver pathophysiology can, directly and indirectly, impose morphological or biochemical abnormalities of the platelets. Conversely, platelets are also able to regulate the promitogenic and profibrotic signals on liver pathobiology. Platelet contribution to the liver pathophysiology is typically facilitated by the platelet-derived growth factors that are sequestered in different subsets of alpha and dense granules, and the release of these growth factors is synchronized according to the stage and type of liver disease or injury. Thus, platelets harbor clinically relevant information with potential diagnostic and prognostic implications in liver diseases. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) largely influences the platelet kinetics, and a growing body of evidence has recognized its association with HCC occurrence or prognosis. This narrative review summarizes the progress made on implicating platelet as a diagnostic and prognostic tool for HCC; the review also dissects the contradictory results from earlier studies and reflects how combining platelet-based information may enable more reliable test for diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of HCC.

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Current status of liver diseases in Korea: Hepatocellular carcinoma

The Korean Journal of Hepatology ◽

10.3350/kjhep.2009.15.s6.s50 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 15 (Suppl 6) ◽

pp. S50 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Il Han Song ◽

Kyung Sik Kim

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

Current Status

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Faculty Opinions recommendation of Adherence to American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases guidelines for the management of hepatocellular carcinoma: results of an Italian field practice multicenter study.

Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature ◽

10.3410/f.718013856.793477509 ◽

2013 ◽

Author(s):

Antonio Craxi ◽

Giuseppe Cabibbo

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Multicenter Study ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

American Association ◽

Field Practice

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Assessment of miR-212 and Other Biomarkers in the Diagnosis and Treatment of HBV-infection-related Liver Diseases

Current Drug Metabolism ◽

10.2174/1389200220666191011120434 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 20 (10) ◽

pp. 785-798 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yigan Zhang ◽

Huaze Xi ◽

Xin Nie ◽

Peng Zhang ◽

Ning Lan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Chronic Hepatitis ◽

Liver Cancer ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Chronic Hepatitis B ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

Meld Score ◽

Hbv Infection ◽

Expression Level ◽

Control Group

Objective: Our study aims to detect the sensitivity of the new biomarker miR-212 existing in serum exosomes along with other hepatocellular carcinoma biomarkers such as AFP (alpha-fetoprotein), CA125 (carbohydrate antigen-ca125), and Hbx protein in the diagnosis of HBV-related liver diseases. We also aim to study the roles of these biomarkers in the progression of chronic hepatitis B and provide scientific data to show the clinical value of these biomarkers. Methods: We selected 200 patients with HBV-infection (58 cases of chronic hepatitis B, 47 cases of hepatocellular carcinoma, 30 cases of compensatory phase cirrhosis, and 65 cases of decompensatory phase cirrhosis), 31 patients with primary liver cancer without HBV infection, and 70 healthy individuals as the control group. The expression level of serum AFP and CA125 was detected with electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. The expression level of the Hbx protein was detected with ELISA. Meanwhile, the expression level of miR-212 in serum was analyzed with RT-qPCR. We collected patients’ clinical information following the Child-Pugh classification and MELD score criterion, and statistical analysis was made between the expression level of miR-212 and the collected clinical indexes. Lastly, we predicted the target genes of the miR-212 and its functions using bioinformatics methods such as cluster analysis and survival prediction. Results: Compared to the control group, the expression level of miR-212 in HBV infected patients was remarkably increased (P<0.05), especially between the HBV-infection Hepatocellular carcinoma group and the non-HBVinfection liver cancer group (P<0.05). The expression of miR-212 was increased in patients’ Child-Pugh classification, MELD score, and TNM staging. Moreover, the sensitivity and specificity of miR-212 were superior to AFP, CA125, and HBx protein. Conclusion: There is a linear relationship between disease progression and expression level of miR-212 in the serum of HBV infected patients. This demonstrates that miR-212 plays a significant role in liver diseases. miR-212 is expected to be a new biomarker used for the diagnosis and assessment of patients with HBV-infection-related liver diseases.

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Phytosterols and Triterpenoids for Prevention and Treatment of Metabolic-related Liver Diseases and Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology ◽

10.2174/1389201020666190219122357 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

pp. 197-214 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Isabel Sánchez-Crisóstomo ◽

Eduardo Fernández-Martínez ◽

Raquel Cariño-Cortés ◽

Gabriel Betanzos-Cabrera ◽

Rosa A. Bobadilla-Lugo

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Liver Disease ◽

Anticancer Agents ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

Membrane Receptors ◽

New Drugs ◽

Sexual Hormones ◽

Steroid Nucleus ◽

Alcoholic Fatty Liver ◽

Prevention And Treatment

Background: Liver ailments are among the leading causes of death; they originate from viral infections, chronic alcoholism, and autoimmune illnesses, which may chronically be precursors of cirrhosis; furthermore, metabolic syndrome may worsen those hepatopathies or cause Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) that may advance to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Cirrhosis is the late-stage liver disease and can proceed to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Pharmacological treatment options for liver diseases, cirrhosis, and HCC, are limited, expensive, and not wholly effective. The use of medicinal herbs and functional foods is growing around the world as natural resources of bioactive compounds that would set the basis for the development of new drugs. Review and Conclusion: Plant and food-derived sterols and triterpenoids (TTP) possess antioxidant, metabolic-regulating, immunomodulatory, and anti-inflammatory activities, as well as they are recognized as anticancer agents, suggesting their application strongly as an alternative therapy in some chronic diseases. Thus, it is interesting to review current reports about them as hepatoprotective agents, but also because they structurally resemble cholesterol, sexual hormones, corticosteroids and bile acids due to the presence of the steroid nucleus, so they all can share pharmacological properties through activating nuclear and membrane receptors. Therefore, sterols and TTP appear as a feasible option for the prevention and treatment of chronic metabolic-related liver diseases, cirrhosis, and HCC.

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New Insights into the Role of miR-29a in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Implications in Mechanisms and Theragnostics

Journal of Personalized Medicine ◽

10.3390/jpm11030219 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. 219

Author(s):

Ya-Ling Yang ◽

Yen-Hsiang Chang ◽

Chia-Jung Li ◽

Ying-Hsien Huang ◽

Ming-Chao Tsai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Tumor Microenvironment ◽

Crucial Role ◽

Human Cancer ◽

Metabolic Adaptation ◽

Advanced Hcc ◽

Diagnosis And Prognosis ◽

Competitive Endogenous Rnas ◽

Growing Body

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains one of the most lethal human cancer globally. For advanced HCC, curable plan for advanced HCC is yet to be established, and the prognosis remains poor. The detail mechanisms underlying the progression of HCC tumorigenicity and the corruption of tumor microenvironment (TME) is complex and inconclusive. A growing body of studies demonstrate microRNAs (miRs) are important regulators in the tumorigenicity and TME development. Notably, mounting evidences indicate miR-29a play a crucial role in exerting hepatoprotective effect on various types of stress and involved in the progression of HCC, which elucidates their potential theragnostic implications. In this review, we reviewed the advanced insights into the detail mechanisms by which miR-29a dictates carcinogenesis, epigenetic program, and metabolic adaptation, and implicated in the sponging activity of competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) and the TME components in the scenario of HCC. Furthermore, we highlighted its clinical significance in diagnosis and prognosis, as well as the emerging therapeutics centered on the activation of miR-29a.

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Current Trends and Characteristics of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Patients with Autoimmune Liver Diseases

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers13051023 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (5) ◽

pp. 1023

Author(s):

Eirini I. Rigopoulou ◽

George N. Dalekos

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

Treatment Modalities ◽

Primary Biliary Cholangitis ◽

Autoimmune Liver Diseases ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Liver Cancers ◽

Medium Risk ◽

Causes Of Mortality

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the commonest among liver cancers, is one of the leading causes of mortality among malignancies worldwide. Several reports demonstrate autoimmune liver diseases (AILDs), including autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) to confer increased risk of hepatobiliary malignancies, albeit at lower frequencies compared to other liver diseases. Several parameters have been recognized as risk factors for HCC development in AIH and PBC, including demographics such as older age and male sex, clinical features, the most decisive being cirrhosis and other co-existing factors, such as alcohol consumption. Moreover, biochemical activity and treatment response have been increasingly recognized as prognostic factors for HCC development in AIH and PBC. As available treatment modalities are effective only when HCC diagnosis is established early, surveillance has been proven essential for HCC prognosis. Considering that the risk for HCC is not uniform between and within disease groups, refinement of screening strategies according to prevailing demographic, clinical, and molecular risk factors is mandated in AILDs patients, as personalized HCC risk prediction will offer significant advantage in patients at high and/or medium risk. Furthermore, future investigations should draw attention to whether modification of immunosuppression could benefit AIH patients after HCC diagnosis.

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The Role of Endoglin in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms22063208 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (6) ◽

pp. 3208

Author(s):

Kuo-Shyang Jeng ◽

I-Shyan Sheen ◽

Shu-Sheng Lin ◽

Chuen-Miin Leu ◽

Chiung-Fang Chang

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Liver Diseases ◽

Transforming Growth Factor ◽

Antiangiogenic Therapy ◽

Transforming Growth Factor Β ◽

Postoperative Recurrence ◽

Transmembrane Glycoprotein ◽

Early Progression

Endoglin (CD105) is a type-1 integral transmembrane glycoprotein and coreceptor for transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) ligands. The endoglin/TGF-β signaling pathway regulates hemostasis, cell proliferation/migration, extracellular matrix (ECM) synthesis and angiogenesis. Angiogenesis contributes to early progression, invasion, postoperative recurrence, and metastasis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most widespread malignancies globally. Endoglin is overexpressed in newly formed HCC microvessels. It increases microvessel density in cirrhotic and regenerative HCC nodules. In addition, circulating endoglin is present in HCC patients, suggesting potential for use as a diagnostic or prognostic factor. HCC angiogenesis is dynamic and endoglin expression varies by stage. TRC105 (carotuximab) is an antibody against endoglin, and three of its clinical trials were related to liver diseases. A partial response was achieved when combining TRC105 with sorafenib. Although antiangiogenic therapy still carries some risks, combination therapy with endoglin inhibitors or other targeted therapies holds promise.

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