Cross-Linked Multimeric Pro-Peptides of Type III Collagen (PC3X) in Hepatocellular Carcinoma - A Biomarker That Provides Additional Prognostic Value in AFP Positive Patients.

Purpose: Non-invasive biomarkers for diagnosing and prognosing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are urgently needed. Cirrhosis is present in 80-90% of HCC patients. Cirrhosis is characterized by deposition and cross-linking of collagens that have crucial roles in HCC initiation and progression.

Prominent subcutaneous oedema as a masquerading symptom of an underlying inflammatory myopathy.

The inflammatory myopathies are a group of immune-mediated inflammatory muscle disorders that typically present with marked proximal muscle weakness. We report four cases of inflammatory myopathies with marked subcutaneous oedema as their main complaint. Three of the four patients had normal or low levels of creatine kinase, an enzyme often markedly elevated in these disorders.

Midkine Increases Diagnostic Yield in AFP Negative and NASH-Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Unlabelled: Robust biomarkers for population-level hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance are lacking. We compared serum midkine (MDK), dickkopf-1 (DKK1), osteopontin (OPN) and AFP for HCC diagnosis in 86 HCC patients matched to 86 cirrhotics, 86 with chronic liver disease (CLD) and 86 healthy controls (HC). Based on the performance of each biomarker, we assessed a separate longitudinal cohort of 28 HCC patients, at and before cancer diagnosis.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease-related hepatocellular carcinoma: a sleeping tiger in the Asia Pacific.

The epidemiology of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the Asia Pacific will undergo significant change over the next few decades as the prevalence of viral hepatitis declines and the burden of metabolic diseases increases. As the Asia Pacific embraces continued affluence, obesity and diabetes rates are burgeoning, becoming increasingly important to the incidence of HCC. Obesity and diabetes are established risk factors for HCC, either as substrates for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or as independent carcinogens themselves.

Visceral adiposity in gastrointestinal and hepatic carcinogenesis.

There is emerging evidence that the association between obesity and cancer is mediated by visceral rather than generalised body fat. Visceral fat has been directly implicated in the risk and progression of several gastrointestinal cancers including colorectal, oesophageal, pancreatic and hepatocellular carcinomas. Excess visceral adipose tissue induces a state of chronic systemic inflammation and altered metabolic activity that promotes a pro-oncogenic environment.

Visceral adiposity index is not a predictor of liver histology in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Background & Aims: Visceral adiposity is associated with hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The visceral adiposity index (VAI), a novel marker of visceral fat distribution and dysfunction, has been correlated with histology in hepatitis C. We assessed the ability of VAI to predict disease severity in NAFLD and hence its role as a non-invasive marker of liver damage.