【Abstract】Objective To explore the changes of expression of AFP mRNA in human hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） tissues after oral Xeloda therapy.Methods Total RNA was extracted from HCC tissue samples collect after operation and nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction （RT-nested PCR） assay was performed to determine the expression of AFP mRNA in this study.Results The final product of AFP mRNA amplified by RT-PCR was 174 bp and by RT-nested PCR was 101 bp. The AFP mRNA is positive in 12 of 21 patients (positive rate 57.14%) amplified by RT-nested PCR assay in Xeloda treatment group which is much lower than control group: 18 of 20 patients (positive rate 90.00%),P＜0.05.The serum AFP value of Xeloda treatment group 〔(23.2±12.8) μg/L〕 is much lower than that of control group 〔(39.6±24.3) μg/L〕 four weeks after operation (P＜0.05). However, There was no difference between two groups in serum AFP value before operation.Conclusion Xeloda can effectively suppress the expression of AFP mRNA in human HCC tissues and lower it’s product serum AFP value.The clinical application of Xeloda in HCC patients deserve further study.
Objective To detect expression of miR-483-5p in surem of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and investigate it’s clinical significance for diagnosis of HCC. Methods The rerum samples of 112 patients with HCC (HCC group), 85 patients with chronic viral hepatitis B (CHB group), and 56 healthy people for physical examination (healthy control group) were collected from January 2010 to January 2012 in the First Hospital of Lanzhou University. According to the results of preliminary chip detection of miRCURY LNATM miRNA, the real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR was adopted to quantitate the serum levels of miR-483-5p and miR-500a and the routine electrochemical method was used to detect the serum alpha fetoprotein (AFP) in every group. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was utilized to analyze the diagnostic values of serum miR-483-5p, miR-500a, and AFP for the HCC. Results The serum levels of miR-483-5p and miR-500a in the HCC group were significantly higher than those of the CHB and healthy control groups (both P<0.000 1), which had no significant differences between the CHB group and the healthy control group (P>0.05). The serum miR-483-5p level of the HCC patient decreased markedly at the postoperative 30 d (P<0.000 1) as compared with the preoperative level. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of miR-483-5p, miR-500a, AFP, or miR-483-5p in combination with AFP for the diagnosis of the HCC was 0.74 (cutoff value=2.842, sensitivity=74% and specificity=66%), 0.66 (cutoff value=1.830, sensitivity=74% and specificity=51%), 0.81 (cutoff value=20 μg/L, sensitivity=78% and specificity=70%), and 0.92 (cutoff value=3.78, sensitivity=81% and specificity=83%), respectively. The AUC values of miR-483-5p in the diagnosis of the HCC patients with positive AFP (AFP>20 μg/L) and negative AFP (0–20 μg/L) were 0.78 and 0.83, respectively. Conclusions Serum miR-483-5p highly expresses in HCC, which has a certain accuracy in diagnosis of HCC, it combined with AFP could further increase its diagnostic value. Serum miR-483-5p might play an important supplemental role in diagnosis of HCC patient with negative AFP.
Hepatoid adenocarcinoma is a rare extrahepatic malignant tumor with pathological characteristics similar to hepatocellular carcinoma. It is more common in the gastrointestinal tract and patients often have a history of hepatitis and elevated serum alpha fetoprotein (AFP). In clinical practice, patients may seek medical treatment due to liver lesions or elevated AFP, while primary gastrointestinal lesions are easily ignored. The author presents imaging findings of two patients who were diagnosed with hepatoid adenocarcinoma of stomach (HAS) due to elevated AFP in our hospital. By summarizing their clinical imaging characteristics and sorting out various clinical conditions that may cause elevated serum AFP, in order to improve the recognition and differential diagnosis of HAS.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between the expression of alpha fetoprotein (AFP) and chemoresistance in hepatocellular carcinoma.MethodsHepatocellular carcinoma was screened from liver tumor tissue samples, which was obtained by puncture before transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Immuno-histochemical staining was used to detect the expression of AFP in HCC tissues and the effect of AFP expression in HCC on the effect of chemotherapy was analyzed.ResultsA total of 62 patients met the inclusion criteria, of which 36 were in the chemotherapy resistant group and 26 in the chemotherapy sensitive group. There were 42 patients with positive expression of AFP in tumor tissues (including 29 patients with chemoresistance) and 20 patients with negative expression of AFP in tumor tissues (including 7 patients with chemoresistance). There were no significant difference between the two groups in sex, age, tumor differentiation, Child-Pugh classification of liver function, tumor size, tumor site and hepatitis (P>0.05). In elevated serum AFP level, tumor single, and with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT), the proportion of patients in the chemosensitivity group were significantly lower than that in the chemosensitivity group (P<0.05). The results of logistic multivariate regression analysis showed that positive expression of AFP ［OR=0.280, 95%CI (0.092, 0.950), P=0.045］ and PVTT ［OR=0.026, 95%CI (0.004, 0.322), P=0.005］ were independent risk factors for chemotherapeutic resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma.ConclusionAFP positive expression in liver tumor tissues and PVTT are useful indicators of resistance to chemotherapy.
【Abstract】Objective To investigate whether liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) causes dissemination of liver tumor cells into blood circulation. Methods Fourteen patients with HCC, but without evidences of metastasis, were enrolled for the study. Blood samples of peripheral blood before skin incision and after abdominal wall suture, and of hepatic venous blood and portal venous blood after liver parenchyma dissection, were obtained. AFPmRNA was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays, the change of the level of its expression during operation was assessed by semi-quantitative analysis. Results The rate of its expression before and after operation in peripheral blood, and during operation in portal venous blood and in hepatic venous was 42.9%, 35.7%, 42.9% and 57.1% respectively. There were no differences between them. However, the level of its expression in hepatic venous blood was significantly higher than others (P＜0.05). Conclusion Liver resection for HCC induces releases of cells from the liver, probably including tumor cells, into blood circulation.
Objective To study the effect of alpha fetoprotein-tumor burden score (ATS) on the long-term prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after resection. MethodsThe data of 2 907 patients with HCC who underwent first hepatectomy from West China Hospital of Sichuan University, West China Ziyang Hospital/Ziyang Central Hospital, The First People’s Hospital of Neijiang, West China Yibin Hospital/the Second People’s Hospital of Yibin, and the Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu University between 2015 and 2022, were retrospectively analyzed. The X-tile software was used to calculate the optimal truncation of the ATS score. Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to explore risk factors affecting postoperative recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) in HCC patients, respectively. ResultsAll patients were followed-up with a median of 37 months (1–90 months), 1 364 cases (46.9%, the recurrence time was 1–89 months after surgery) of them experienced recurrence and 847 cases (29.1%) died (the death time was 1–88 months after surgery). The 1-, 2- and 3-year OS rates were 89.3%, 81.4% and 75.9%, respectively. The 1-, 2- and 3-year RFS rates were 76.0%, 64.3% and 57.2%, respectively. The 5-year RFS rate of HCC patients with low-, medium-, and high-ATS scores were 56.4%, 45.0% and 27.2%, respectively, and patients with low ATS score had better RFS (χ2=264.747, P<0.001). The 5-year OS rates of HCC patients with low-, medium-, and high-ATS scores were 78.0%, 59.8% and 38.8%, respectively, and patients with low-ATS score had better OS (χ2=372.685, P<0.001). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression model suggested that, in condition of adjusting other factors, medium-ATS score [RR=1.375, 95%CI (1.209, 1.564), P<0.001] and high-ATS score [RR=2.048, 95%CI (1.764, 2.377), P<0.001] were risk factors for postoperative RFS; the medium-ATS score [RR=1.779, 95%CI (1.499, 2.112), P<0.001] and high ATS score [RR=2.676, 95%CI (2.211, 3.239), P<0.001] were also risk factors affecting postoperative OS. ConclusionATS score can predict the prognosis of HCC patients after resection, patients with high ATS score had a higher incidence of postoperative recurrence and mortality.
Objective The usefulness of measurement of nuclear DNA content elevation for diagnosis of early hepatocellular carcinoma was evaluated by a study of 186 patients with liver cirrhosis. Methods Nuclear DNA content was measured using an automatic image analysis system.Results ①Hepatocellular carcinoma was found in 37 patients during 10 years follow-up, the cumulative incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma was 19.89%. ②The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma increased with the increase of the patterns of α-fetoprotein (AFP), 5c exceeding rate (5cER), FORM PE, but positive predictive value of 5cER was the highest of three parameters, the difference among all groups was significant by the χ2 test (Ｐ＜0.05). ③When 5cER joined AFP for monitoring development of hepatocellular carcinoma, the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma was 72.00%, which was significantly higher than that of 5cER or AFP alone, the difference between groups was highly significant (Ｐ＜0.01). Conclusion Patients who had 5cER levels of 3%-5% or more, who had transient increases in 5cER or who had both, should be treated as being in a super-highrisk group for hepatocellular carcinoma. Frequent and careful examination by ultrasonography of such patients is recommended. It is important that measurement of 5cER join with AFP in cirrhotic patients monitored for early development of hepatocellular carcinoma.
Objective To explore the expression of CD34 and polyclone carcinoembryonic antigen (pCEA) of positive and negative alpha fetoprotein (AFP) detected by puncture biopsy in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the significance of pathological diagnosis. Methods Fifty-four HCC tissue specimens from 2013 to 2015 were collected from tumor biopsy samples which confirmed by pathology in the Central Hospital of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. The tissue samples were divided into positive AFP group (n=33) and negative AFP group (n=21) according to the detection results of serology and immunohistochemistry analysis of AFP. Expressions of CD34 and pCEA in the fifty-four HCC specimens were detected by immunohistochemistry. Results The positvie expression rate of pCEA in the positive AFP group was 69.7%, which was significantly higher than that in the negative AFP group (38.1%) (P<0. 05). However, the difference in positive expression rate of CD34 between the positive and negative AFP groups (90.91% and 85.71%, respectively) was not significant (P>0.05). Conclusion The associated detection of AFP, pCEA and CD34 in HCC tissues might contribute to the pathological and differential diagnosis of human hepatocellular carcinoma in puncture biopsies.
ObjectiveTo study the clinical value of changes of serumα-fetoprotein(AFP) and soluble cell adhesion molecule-1(sICAM-1) levels before and after surgical treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma(PHC) as predictors of patient survival. MethodsThe clinical data and followed-up results of 86 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma received hepatectomy or radiofrequency ablation(RFA) in Xijing Hospital and the 451st Hospital of PLA were retrospectivly analyzed. The changes of peripheral blood AFP and sICAM-1 levels in patients before and in 1 month after treatment were observed and all patients were divided into different groups according to the changes in both two markers. Then survival rates of each group were analyzed. ResultsThe patients with AFP < 20μg/L or sICAM-1 < 1 000 U/L before treatment had lower tumor recurrence rate and higher survival rate than patients with elevated serum levels of the both markers(AFP:P=0.018, P < 0.001;sICAM-1:P=0.027, P < 0.001). The larger tumor, late TNM stage, and higher rate of recurrence were associated with elevated serum levels of the both markers(AFP:P=0.016, P=0.026 and P=0.025;sICAM-1:P < 0.001, P=0.024 and P=0.032). The better survival situation was closely related with these cases treated with hepatectomy and their levels of both markers were lower than the above cutoff values both before and after treatment, or leves of both markers above the cut-off values returned to within the normal range after treatment (AFP:P=0.006, P=0.001;sICAM-1:P=0.001, P=0.002). The patients who had simultaneous increase of AFP and sICAM-1 after operation showed the worst tumor-free and overall survivals(P=0.007, P < 0.001). ConclusionTo test the changes of serum AFP and sICAM-1 levels in early stage after treatment for patients who received radical resection of hepatocellular carcinoma has good clinical value for monitoring of tumor recurrence and predict prognosis.