Experimental Design: We evaluated Rac and VEGF expression in the HCC tissue microarray of paired primary and metastatic HCC samples using immunohistochemical staining. The role of Rac-induced HCC angiogenesis was also evaluated in vitro in HCC cell lines.

Results: We first showed that activation of Rac was correlated with HCC metastasis (P < 0.001), and its expression was significantly correlated with VEGF expression by tissue microarray. Ectopic Rac-dominant active transfection in Hep3B cells increased VEGF secretion, which induced the morphologic change and proliferation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, resulting in the promotion of angiogenesis. Rac induced the transcriptional activation of VEGF by direct interaction with hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) expression. In hypoxic conditions, Rac promoted angiogenesis through an increase in HIF-1 stabilization.

Conclusion: This study shows that Rac is a novel angiogenic factor for HCC through the enhancement of HIF-1 protein stability, which provides a possible therapeutic target in the development of inhibitors of angiogenesis.

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The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma is increasing in many countries. The estimated number of new cases annually is over 500,000, and the yearly incidence comprises between 2.5 and 7% of patients with liver cirrhosis. The incidence varies between different geographic areas, being higher in developing areas; males are predominantly affected, with a 2:3 male/female ratio. The heterogeneous geographic distribution reflects the epidemiologic impact of the main etiologic factors and environmental risk, which are the hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) viruses. The percentage of cases of hepatocellular carcinoma attributable to HBV worldwide is 52.3% and is higher in Asia where the seroprevalence of HBsAg in the population is high. However, the vaccination campaign against this virus in some eastern countries has tended to lower the incidence of new cases of hepatocellular carcinoma. The percentage of cases of hepatocellular carcinoma attributable to HCV is 25%, and it is more prevalent in Japan, Spain, and Italy where the association between hepatocellular carcinoma and antibodies to HCV ranges between 50 and 70%. In most cases hepatocellular carcinoma develops in cirrhotic livers, where the persistent proliferation of liver cells represents the key factor of progression to hepatocellular carcinoma independent of the etiology. Another minor risk factor is aflatoxin B1 consumption, which is responsible for most cases of hepatocellular carcinoma in Africa, where the consumption of contaminated foods is common. Other known risk factors are some hereditary diseases, such as hemochromatosis, porphyria cutanea tarda, hereditary tyrosinemia, and ₁ anti-trypsin deficiency. The natural history of hepatocellular carcinoma is heterogeneous and is influenced by nodule dimension, the mono- or plurifocality of lesions at diagnosis, the growth rate of the tumor, and the stage of the underlying cirrhosis. Available data to date suggest that tumor growth in a cirrhotic liver is variable and that the time in which a lesion in undetectable until it becomes 2 cm is between 4 and 12 months. Therefore, the suggested interval for surveillance screening with ultrasound in patients with liver cirrhosis has been set at 6 months. Patients who should benefit from screening programs are those who would be treated with curative therapy if diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma. Thus, the ideal target population should be limited to Child-Pugh’s class A cirrhotic patients without significant comorbidity.

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The cause of liver cancer is usually cirrhosis (scarring of the liver). Cirrhosis may be caused by viral hepatitis, primarily hepatitis B and C, alcohol abuse, hemochromatosis, certain autoimmune diseases of the liver, and other diseases that result in chronic inflammation of the liver. The most common cause for cirrhosis in the United States is alcohol abuse.

Symptoms

·         Abdominal pain or tenderness, particularly in the right-upper quadrant

·         Enlarged abdomen

·         Easy bruising or bleeding

·         Jaundice (a yellow discoloration of the skin and eyes)

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Primary liver cancer is different from cancer that has metastasized (spread) from another place in the body to the liver.

The signs and symptoms may include a hard lump just below the rib cage on the right side (from swelling of the liver), discomfort in the upper abdomen on the right side, pain around the right shoulder blade, or yellowing of the skin (jaundice).

There is often an increase in the blood levels of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and alkaline phosphatase. A rapid deterioration of liver function may be the only clue to the presence of the tumor.

Hepatocellular carcinoma is potentially curable by surgery, but surgery is the treatment of choice for only a small fraction of patients who have localized disease. Laparoscopy may detect metastatic disease, tumor in both lobes of the liver, or an inadequate liver remnant, and avoid the need for open surgery to explore the liver.

Therapy other than surgery is best as part of a clinical trial. Such trials evaluate the efficacy of systemic or infusional chemotherapy, hepatic artery ligation or embolization, percutaneous ethanol (alcohol) injection, radiofrequency ablation, cryotherapy (freezing the tumor), and radiolabeled antibodies, often in conjunction with surgical resection (removal) and/or radiation therapy.

The prognosis (outlook) depends on the degree of local tumor replacement and the extent of liver function impairment.

Primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma) is the most common cancer in some parts of the world. It is still relatively uncommon in the US but its incidence is rising, principally in relation to the spread of hepatitis B and hepatitis C. People who have a disease of the liver called cirrhosis are also more likely to get adult primary liver cancer.

Hepatitis B and C appear to be the most significant causes of hepatocellular carcinoma worldwide. People who have both hepatitis B and hepatitis C may be at a higher risk if they consume more than 3 oz. (80 grams) of alcohol a day. A first-degree relative with hepatocellular carcinoma also increases the risk.

Hepatocellular carcinoma is associated with cirrhosis in 50% to 80% of patients; 5% of cirrhotic patients eventually develop hepatocellular cancer.

Aflatoxin has also been implicated as a factor in the etiology (causation) of primary liver cancer in parts of the world where this mycotoxin occurs in high levels in food.

Workers exposed to vinyl chloride before controls on vinyl chloride dust were instituted developed sarcomas in the liver, most commonly angiosarcomas.

Common Misspellings: hepatocellular carcimona

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Because hepatic cirrhosis is a major risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma, recent guidelines by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) on clinical management of hepatocellular carcinoma recommend periodic ultrasound surveillance of cirrhotic patients with immediate workup for nodules >1 cm; an increase in the frequency of screening is considered sufficient for smaller lesions.

Aims:

To determine the actual risk of hepatocellular carcinoma associated with the latter lesions and to assess the role of ultrasound guided-fine needle biopsy in their diagnosis

Patients and methods:

Data were analysed for 294 new nodular lesions <20 mm, including 48 that were <10 mm, detected during a prospective multicentre study involving ultrasound surveillance of 4375 patients with hepatic cirrhosis. In the absence of fetoprotein (AFP) levels diagnostic of hepatocellular carcinoma, ultrasound guided-fine needle biopsy was performed (n = 274). AFP and fine needle biopsy diagnoses of malignancies (hepatocellular carcinoma and lymphoma) were considered definitive. Non-malignant fine needle biopsy diagnoses (dysplastic or regenerative nodule) were verified by a second imaging study. Diagnoses of hepatocellular carcinoma based on this study were considered definitive; non-malignant imaging diagnoses were considered definitive after at least one year of clinical and ultrasound follow up.

Results:

Overall, 258/294 (87.6%) nodules proved to be hepatocellular carcinoma, including 33/48 (68.7%) of those 10 mm. Overall typing accuracy of ultrasound guided-fine needle biopsy was 89.4%, and 88.6% for lesions 10 mm.

Conclusions:

In a screening population, well over half of very small nodules arising in cirrhotic livers may prove to be hepatocellular carcinoma, and approximately 90% of these malignancies can be reliably identified with ultrasound guided-fine needle biopsy.

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MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty patients with 45 nodular HCC lesions 1.0–3.8 cm in diameter underwent power Doppler US before and after intravenous injection of a microbubble contrast agent. The same procedures were repeated after US-guided percutaneous RF ablation. The results of these studies were compared with those of three-phase helical computed tomography (CT) performed immediately after RF ablation.

RESULTS: Before RF ablation, nonenhanced power Doppler US demonstrated flow signals within tumor in 33 of 45 HCCs. After contrast agent administration, flow signals increased or newly appeared in all cases. After RF ablation, none of the ablated tumors showed intratumoral flow signals at nonenhanced power Doppler US, whereas six showed marginal intratumoral flow signals at contrast agent–enhanced power Doppler US. These six tumors were found to have small enhancing foci, suggestive of viable tumor, in corresponding areas at immediate follow-up CT. Additional RF ablation or transcatheter arterial chemoembolization was performed in these tumors.

CONCLUSION: The results of power Doppler US with a microbubble contrast agent in HCCs treated with RF ablation correlated well with those of contrast-enhanced CT. Preliminary data suggest that contrast-enhanced power Doppler US can be a promising noninvasive technique for assessing therapeutic response.

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Background: Patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) are at increased risk for hepatocellular carcinoma. Although serum -fetoprotein (AFP) is often used to detect hepatocellular carcinoma in HCV-infected individuals, its utility is unclear.

Purpose: To define the test characteristics of AFP for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with HCV.

Data Sources: MEDLINE search from 1966 to December 2002 for English- and non–English-language articles examining the test characteristics of AFP for identifying hepatocellular carcinoma.

Study Selection: Articles were included if they reported the sensitivity and specificity of AFP for detecting hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with HCV. Articles were excluded if the cause of hepatitis was ambiguous or if 50% or more of the study patients did not have HCV.

Data Extraction: Relevant articles were evaluated for quality of evidence; test characteristics were abstracted and calculated.

Data Synthesis: Five studies met all inclusion criteria and were analyzed. The overall quality of evidence was limited; only one study universally applied an acceptable gold standard test, and three of five studies used a case–control design that potentially overestimates diagnostic accuracy. By using the most commonly reported cutoff value of a positive test result for hepatocellular carcinoma (AFP level > 20 µg/L), the ranges of test characteristics were as follows: sensitivity, 41% to 65%; specificity, 80% to 94%; positive likelihood ratios, 3.1 to 6.8; and negative likelihood ratios, 0.4 to 0.6.

Conclusions: The paucity of high-quality data calls for more rigorous study of AFP and other diagnostic tests for detecting hepatocellular carcinoma in HCV-infected patients with an accepted gold standard applied to the entire cohort. Even if the “best-case” estimates of AFP sensitivity and specificity are accurate, AFP has limited utility for detecting hepatocellular carcinoma.

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