Novel Biomarkers of Hepatobiliary Tumors

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Biomarkers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 3786

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita 565-0871, Japan
Interests: hepatocellular carcinoma; intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma; pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; molecular targeted agents; immunotherapy; biomarkers; genetically engineered mouse models; forward genetic screen; transposon; CRISPR/Cas; cancer genetics
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Dear Colleagues,

Hepatobiliary tumors including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), intracellular cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), and extrahepatic biliary tract cancer (BTC) are lethal malignancies. They are frequently diagnosed at inoperable advanced stages so detection markers with high sensitivity and specificity are highly desired. In addition, even after curative therapy such as locoregional treatment or surgery, tumors especially HCC frequently relapse. Therefore, it is also important to develop predictive biomarkers for tumor recurrence. Several molecular targeted drugs including angiogenesis and immune checkpoint inhibitors have been recently developed but their response rates were still unsatisfactory and there are no predictive biomarkers for their efficacy. Recent technological advances are capable of using a variety of biospecimens (e.g., tissue, blood, urine, bile juice, stool and so on) and biomaterials (e.g., DNA, RNA, protein, miRNA, exosome, metabolite, circulating cells, etc) as potential biomarkers. 

For this Special Issue of Cancers, we will welcome original research and review articles that focus on recent advances in the area of biomarker research targeting hepatobiliary cancer.

Dr. Takahiro Kodama
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • HCC
  • ICC
  • CCC
  • immune checkpoint inhibitor
  • tumor marker
  • hepatocellular carcinoma
  • intracellular cholangiocarcinoma
  • cholangiocellular carcinoma
  • BTC
  • biliary tract cancer

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 11243 KiB  
Article
Phospholipase A2 Group IIA Is Associated with Inflammatory Hepatocellular Adenoma
by Sadahiro Iwabuchi, Kenta Takahashi, Kazunori Kawaguchi, Akihisa Nagatsu, Tadashi Imafuku, Shigeyuki Shichino, Kouji Matsushima, Akinobu Taketomi, Masao Honda and Shinichi Hashimoto
Cancers 2024, 16(1), 159; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16010159 - 28 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1447
Abstract
Although benign hepatocellular adenomas (HCA) are very rare, recent observations have shown their occurrence in patients with diabetes mellitus. Consequently, most of these cases are treated by resection due to concerns regarding their potential progression to hepatocarcinoma (HCC). This decision is largely driven [...] Read more.
Although benign hepatocellular adenomas (HCA) are very rare, recent observations have shown their occurrence in patients with diabetes mellitus. Consequently, most of these cases are treated by resection due to concerns regarding their potential progression to hepatocarcinoma (HCC). This decision is largely driven by the limited number of studies on HCC subtyping and the lack of molecular and biological insights into the carcinogenic potential of benign tumors. This study aimed to comprehensively investigate the subtype classification of HCA and to compare and analyze gene expression profiling between HCA and HCC tissues. One fresh inflammatory HCA (I-HCA), three non-B non-C HCCs, two hepatitis B virus-HCCs, and one normal liver tissue sample were subjected to single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). Comparative analysis of scRNA-seq among different tissues showed that phospholipase A2 group IIA (PLA2G2A) mRNA was specifically expressed in I-HCA, following RNA-seq analysis in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues from other HCAs. Immunohistochemistry using the PLA2G2A antibody in these tissues indicated that the positive reaction was mainly observed in hepatocytes of I-HCAs and stromal cells surrounding the tumor tissue in HCC were also stained. According to a clinical database, PLA2G2A expression in HCC does not correlate with poor prognosis. This finding may potentially help develop a new definition for I-HCA, resulting in a significant clinical contribution, but it requires validation with other fresh HCA samples. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Biomarkers of Hepatobiliary Tumors)
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Review

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17 pages, 1513 KiB  
Review
Management of Portal Hypertension in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma on Systemic Treatment: Current Evidence and Future Perspectives
by Valeria De Gaetano, Maria Pallozzi, Lucia Cerrito, Francesco Santopaolo, Leonardo Stella, Antonio Gasbarrini and Francesca Romana Ponziani
Cancers 2024, 16(7), 1388; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16071388 - 31 Mar 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1776
Abstract
The management of CSPH in patients undergoing systemic treatment for HCC has emerged as a critical concern due to the absence of reliable diagnostic criteria and uncertainties surrounding therapeutic approaches. This review aims to underscore the primary pathophysiological aspects linking HCC and PH, [...] Read more.
The management of CSPH in patients undergoing systemic treatment for HCC has emerged as a critical concern due to the absence of reliable diagnostic criteria and uncertainties surrounding therapeutic approaches. This review aims to underscore the primary pathophysiological aspects linking HCC and PH, while also addressing the current and emerging clinical strategies for the management of portal hypertension. A review of studies from January 2003 to June 2023 was conducted using the PubMed database and employing MeSH terms, such as “hepatocellular carcinoma”, “immune checkpoint inhibitors”, “systemic therapy”, “portal hypertension”, “variceal bleeding” and “tyrosine kinase inhibitors”. Despite promising results of tyrosine kinase inhibitors in animal models for PH and fibrosis, only Sorafenib has demonstrated similar effects in human studies, whereas Lenvatinib appears to promote PH development. The impact of Atezolizumab/Bevacizumab on PH remains uncertain, with an increasing risk of bleeding related to Bevacizumab in patients with prior variceal hemorrhage. Given the absence of specific guidelines, endoscopic surveillance during treatment is advisable, and primary and secondary prophylaxis of variceal bleeding should adhere to the Baveno VII recommendations. Furthermore, in patients with advanced HCC, refinement of diagnostic criteria for CSPH and guidelines for its surveillance are warranted. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Biomarkers of Hepatobiliary Tumors)
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