Amphiregulin as a Novel Biomarker in Diagnosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma before and After Treatment

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the fifth most common tumour worldwide and the second most common cause of cancer-related death with a male-to-female predominance greater than 2:1. The presence of cirrhosis represents a key risk factor for the development of HCC. The prevalence of cirrhosis among patients with HCC has been estimated to be 85%-95% and the HCC incidence rate among patients with cirrhosis has been shown to be 2%-4% per year. HCC is an inflammation-related cancer, as a chronic inflammatory state is necessary for cancer appearance. HCC is a major cause of cancer-related death due to lack of early detection methods, ineffective therapies and frequent recurrence or metastasis. Late diagnosis leads to only a small percentage of patients to be suitable for effective therapeutic options as liver transplantation, resection or local ablation therapy. AREG expression in normal liver is very low; however, its level is markedly increased upon liver injury, providing a prominent regenerative role in liver tissues . However, it