Serological tumor markers of hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tarek D. Hussein

Background The clinical value of serum α-fetoprotein (AFP) to detect hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been questioned due to its low sensitivity and specificity. Other than AFP, several new serum biomarkers including glypican-3 (GPC3), des-γ-carboxy prothrombin (DCP), α-L-fucosidase enzyme (AFU) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have been identified as useful HCC markers. Material and methods A systematic search on PubMed, Web of Science and others was performed. Twenty-six case-control studies on HCC-related biomarkers published from 2000 to 2014 were included in this analysis. Data on sensitivity and specificity of tests were extracted and analyzed using the Meta-DiSc 1.4 statistical program. Fixed or random-effects models were used depending on the absence or presence of significant heterogeneity. Summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curves were obtained to evaluate the accuracy of the studied markers. Results The areas under the sROC curve of AFP, GPC3, DCP, AFU, VEGF and the combination of each of the last 4 markers with AFP were 0.869, 0.928, 0.832, 0.851, 0.834, 0.964, 0.972, 0.873 and 0.948, respectively. A combination of AFP+GPC3, AFP+DCP or AFP+VEGF was superior to AFP alone in detecting HCC. The area under the sROC curve of GPC3 alone was significantly higher than that of AFP, whereas the areas of DCP, AFU and VEGF were comparable to that of AFP. Conclusions GPC3, DCP, AFU and VEGF are suitable markers for HCC, and their determination with AFP may prove to be useful in the diagnosis and screening of HCC.

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Xueying Wang ◽  
Yangyu Zhang ◽  
Na Yang ◽  
Hua He ◽  
Xuerong Tao ◽  
...  

The role of α-fetoprotein (AFP) in the surveillance and diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been questioned in recent years due to its low sensitivity and specificity. In addition to AFP, several new serum biomarkers, such as lens culinaris agglutinin-reactive fraction of AFP (AFP-L3) and des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP), have also been identified as useful HCC serological markers. However, the exact diagnostic value of the combinations of these biomarkers for detecting HCC in patients with liver disease remains unclear. Thus, we performed the current meta-analysis to assess performance of AFP+AFP-L3%+DCP for diagnosing HCC. Studies were systematically searched in PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, CNKI, and WanFang Data databases. After full-text evaluation, 13 studies from 11 articles focusing on the combination of the three serum biomarkers for HCC detection were enrolled. Random-effects models were used due to the presence of heterogeneity. The pooled sensitivity and specificity for AFP+AFP-L3%+DCP were 88% and 79%, respectively. The area under the summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve was 0.91, and the diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) was 28.33 (95% CI 16.78-47.83). Subgroup analysis showed that the pooled sensitivity and specificity of AFP+AFP-L3%+DCP in the diagnosis of HCC versus cirrhosis patients were 0.81 and 0.82, respectively. In conclusion, the combination of AFP, AFP-L3%, and DCP may prove to be useful in the diagnosis and screening of HCC.


2022 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liping Lu ◽  
Xuming Pan

Non-contrast MRI is used for identifying patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), especially among high-risk patients with cirrhosis or chronic viral hepatitis. The accuracy of non-contrast MRI has been investigated with varying results. We performed this meta-analysis to consolidate the evidence on the accuracy of non-contrast MRI for the detection of HCC. We conducted a systematic search in the databases of PubMed Central, SCOPUS, MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane from inception till November 2020. We used the STATA software “Midas” package for meta-analysis. We included 15 studies with 3,756 patients. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of non-contrast MRI for HCC detection were 84% (95%CI, 78%-88%) and 94% (95%CI, 91%-97%). The positive likelihood ratio was 14.9 (95% CI, 9.0-24.7) and the negative one 0.17 (0.12-0.23). The overall quality of the studies was high. We found significant heterogeneity based on chi-square test results and I2 statistic > 75%. Deek’s test showed the absence of publication bias. We found that non-contrast MRI has high sensitivity and specificity as a tool for detecting HCC. Studies exploring its accuracy in different ethnic populations are required to strengthen the evidence. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.3.5142 How to cite this:Lu L, Pan X. Accuracy of Non-Contrast MRI for the Detection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Pak J Med Sci. 2022;38(3):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.3.5142 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun Zhao ◽  
Hongyan Dai ◽  
Juwei Shao ◽  
Qian He ◽  
Wei Su ◽  
...  

BackgroundContrast-enhanced MRI can be used to identify patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, studies around the world have found differing diagnostic accuracies for the technique. Hence, we designed this meta-analysis to assess the accuracy of contrast-enhanced MRI for HCC diagnosis.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search for all studies reporting the diagnostic accuracy of contrast-enhanced MRI for HCC in the databases of MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, SCOPUS, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar from inception until January 2021. We used the “Midas” package from the STATA software to perform the meta-analysis.ResultsOur study was based on 21 publications with 5,361 patients. The pooled HCC diagnosis sensitivity and specificity were 75% (95% CI, 70%–80%) and 90% (95% CI, 88%–92%), respectively, for gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI; and they were 70% (95% CI, 57%–81%) and 94% (95% CI, 85%–97%), respectively, for MRI with extracellular contrast agents (ECA-MRI). We found significant heterogeneity with a significant chi-square test and an I2 statistic >75%. We also found significant publication bias as per Deeks’ test results and funnel plot.ConclusionWe found that both types of contrast-enhanced MRI are accurate diagnostic and surveillance tools for HCC and offer high sensitivity and specificity. Further studies on different ethnic populations are required to strengthen our findings.


2018 ◽  
Vol 59 (11) ◽  
pp. 1386-1394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shan Pi ◽  
Rong Cao ◽  
Jin Wei Qiang ◽  
Yan Hui Guo

Background Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and quantitative apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values are widely used in the differential diagnosis of ovarian tumors. Purpose To assess the diagnostic performance of quantitative ADC values in ovarian tumors. Material and Methods PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and local databases were searched for studies assessing ovarian tumors using quantitative ADC values. We quantitatively analyzed the diagnostic performances for two clinical problems: benign vs. malignant tumors and borderline vs. malignant tumors. We evaluated diagnostic performances by the pooled sensitivity and specificity values and by summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curves. Subgroup analyses were used to analyze study heterogeneity. Results From the 742 studies identified in the search results, 16 studies met our inclusion criteria. A total of ten studies evaluated malignant vs. benign ovarian tumors and six studies assessed malignant vs. borderline ovarian tumors. Regarding the diagnostic accuracy of quantitative ADC values for distinguishing between malignant and benign ovarian tumors, the pooled sensitivity and specificity values were 0.91 and 0.91, respectively. The area under the SROC curve (AUC) was 0.96. For differentiating borderline from malignant tumors, the pooled sensitivity and specificity values were 0.89 and 0.79, and the AUC was 0.91. The methodological quality of the included studies was moderate. Conclusion Quantitative ADC values could serve as useful preoperative markers for predicting the nature of ovarian tumors. Nevertheless, prospective trials focused on standardized imaging parameters are needed to evaluate the clinical value of quantitative ADC values in ovarian tumors.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Qu ◽  
Jizhi Yang ◽  
Ming Chen ◽  
Lihong Cui ◽  
Tianxi Wang ◽  
...  

Background: MicroRNA-21 (miR-21) is one of the oncogenic miRNAs which may be a potential diagnostic biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: We systematically searched Medline, Embase, the Cochrane Library, ISI Web of Knowledge, Scopus from inception to August 15, 2018, and reference lists of identified primary studies. Two independent investigators extracted patient and study characteristics. The sensitivity and specificity of microRNA-21 for HCC detection and were analyzed with a random effect model. The area under summary receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to estimate overall test performance. Results: A total of 515 HCC patients, and 338 healthy or chronic hepatitis controls from six published studies were enrolled in this meta-analysis. All articles were published in English with moderate-to-high quality. The overall pooled sensitivity and specificity were 85.2% (73.3% to 88.4%) and 79.2% (68.4% to 87.0%), respectively. The AUC area was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.85-0.91). The studies had moderate heterogeneity (I2=70.11%). None of the subgroups investigated-ethnicity, controls, sample source-could account for the heterogeneity. Conclusion: MiR-21 is a helpful biomarker for early diagnosis of HCC. Nevertheless, the results of the test must be interpreted carefully in the context of medical history, erological tests and imaging examinations for HCC surveillance. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.35.5.685 How to cite this:Qu J, Yang J, Chen M, Cui L, Wang T, Gao W, et al. MicroRNA-21 as a diagnostic marker for hepatocellular carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Pak J Med Sci. 2019;35(5):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.35.5.685 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rong Zhu ◽  
Jing Yang ◽  
Ling Xu ◽  
Weiqi Dai ◽  
Fan Wang ◽  
...  

Background. There have been many reports on des-γ-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) as a promising serum marker in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); however, the results are inconsistent and even conflicting.Methods. This meta-analysis was performed to investigate the performance of DCP in the diagnosis of HCC. Following a systematic review of relevant studies, Meta-DiSc 1.4 software was used to extract data and to calculate the overall sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR). Data are presented as forest plots and summary receiver operating characteristic curve (SROC) analysis was used to summarize the overall test performance.Results. Twelve studies were included in our meta-analysis. The overall sensitivity, specificity, PLR, and NLR of DCP for the detection of HCC in the studies included were 71% (95%CI: 68%–73%), 84% (95%CI: 83%–86%), 6.48 (95%CI: 4.22–9.93), and 0.33 (95%CI: 0.25–0.43), respectively. The area under the SROC curve was 0.8930 and theQindex was 0.8238. Significant heterogeneity was found.Conclusion. This meta-analysis indicated that DCP had moderate diagnostic accuracy in HCC. Further studies with rigorous design, large sample size, and mmultiregional cooperation are needed in the future.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yao Jiang ◽  
Jimin He ◽  
Yiqin Li ◽  
Yongcan Guo ◽  
Hualin Tao

Background. Recently, the role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in diagnosing cancer has been attracted increasing attention. However, few miRNAs have been applied in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of miRNAs for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at early stages clinically. Methods. A literature search was carried out using PubMed, Web of Science, and EMBASE databases. We explored the diagnostic value of miRNAs in distinguishing HCC from healthy individuals. The quality assessment was performed in Review Manager 5.3 software. The overall sensitivity and specificity and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were obtained with random-effects models through Stata 14.0 software. And heterogeneity was assessed using Q test and I2 statistics. Meta-regression and subgroup analyses were conducted based on the sample, nation, quality of studies, and miRNA profiling. The publication bias was evaluated through Deeks’ funnel plot. Results. A total of 34 studies, involving in 2747 HCC patients and 2053 healthy individuals, met the inclusion criteria in the 33 included literature studies. In the summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve, AUC was 0.92 (95% CI, 0.90–0.94), with 0.84 (95% CI, 0.79–0.88) sensitivity and 0.87 (95% CI, 0.83–0.90) specificity. There was no publication bias (P=0.48). Conclusion. miRNAs in vivo can be acted as a potential diagnostic biomarker for HCC, which can facilitate the early diagnosis of HCC in clinical practice.


Liver Cancer ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 468-476
Author(s):  
Hairong Liu ◽  
Yu Shi ◽  
John C. Hayden ◽  
Paul M. Ryan ◽  
Jamal Rahmani ◽  
...  

Purpose: Tenofovir (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) are both equally recommended as first-line treatments for patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). They have comparable efficacy in virologic response, but their effect on the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in CHB is controversial. Therefore, we aimed to compare TDF and ETV evaluating the risk of HCC development in CHB patients. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted up to November 2019 in MEDLINE/PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Science databases without language and time restrictions. DerSimonian and Laird random-effects models were used to estimate combined hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs. Results: Seven studies containing 35,785 participants were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled HR (95% CI) of HCC in the patients who used TDF versus patients who used ETV was 0.75 (0.56–0.96). There was no significant heterogeneity detected among the included studies results (I2 = 47.5%). There was no significant publication bias detected among the included studies (Begg’s p = 0.88 and Egger’s regression test p = 0.96). Conclusions: Evidence to date suggests that TDF treatment is associated with significantly fewer cases of HCC when compared to ETV.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Li ◽  
Tiezheng Wang ◽  
Boxun Jin ◽  
Wenlei Li ◽  
Zhenshun Wang ◽  
...  

Background: Previous studies have evaluated the diagnostic value of serum glypican-3 in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the results remain inconsistent and even controversial. Thus, the aim of the present meta-analysis was to clarify the diagnostic accuracy of serum glypican-3 for hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: A meta-analysis including 22 studies was performed with 2325 cases and 2280 controls. Relevant studies were searched in the EMBASE, PubMed, and Web of Science databases, covering relevant papers published until November 1, 2017. The quality of the studies was assessed by revised QUADAS tools. Sensitivity, specificity, and other measures were pooled and determined to evaluate the accuracy of serum glypican-3 in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma by random-effects models. Summary receiver operating characteristic curve (sROC) analysis was performed to summarize the overall test performance. Results: The results showed that the pooled overall diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, and 95% confidence interval (CI) for serum glypican-3 in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma were 68% (56-79%) and 92% (82-96.0%), respectively. Besides, the summary diagnostic odds ratio and 95% CI for glypican-3 were 23.53 (8.57-64.63). In addition, the area under sROC and 95% CI was 0.87 (0.84-0.90). The major design deficiencies of included studies were differential verification bias, and a lack of clear exclusion and inclusion criteria. Conclusions: The results of this meta-analysis suggested that serum glypican-3 was acceptable as a moderate diagnostic marker in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma compared with healthy individuals, which could elevate the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosis. Furthermore, more well-designed studies with large sample sizes are needed to show the effectiveness of glypican-3 in the differential diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (15) ◽  
pp. 1485-1500
Author(s):  
Lichao Yang ◽  
Chunmeng Wei ◽  
Yasi Li ◽  
Xiao He ◽  
Min He

Aim: The aim was to systematically investigate the miRNA biomarkers for early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials & methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis of miRNA expression in HCC were performed. Results: A total of 4903 cases from 30 original studies were comprehensively analyzed. The sensitivity and specificity of miR-224 in discriminating early-stage HCC patients from benign lesion patients were 0.868 and 0.792, which were superior to α-fetoprotein. Combined miR-224 with α-fetoprotein, the sensitivity and specificity were increased to 0.882 and 0.808. Prognostic survival analysis showed low expression of miR-125b and high expression of miR-224 were associated with poor prognosis. Conclusion: miR-224 had a prominent diagnostic efficiency in early-stage HCC, with miR-224 and miR-125b being valuable in the prognostic diagnosis.


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