Genetic alterations in hepatocellular carcinoma: An update

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Although recent advances in therapeutic approaches for treating HCC have improved the prognoses of patients with HCC, this cancer is still associated with a poor survival rate mainly due to late diagnosis. Therefore, a diagnosis must be made sufficiently early to perform curative and effective treatments. There is a need for a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the initiation and progression of HCC because these mechanisms are critical for making early diagnoses and developing novel therapeutic strategies. Over the past decade, much progress has been made in elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying hepatocarcinogenesis. In particular, recent advances in next-generation sequencing technologies have revealed numerous genetic alterations, including recurrently mutated genes and dysregulated signaling pathways in HCC. A better understanding of the genetic alterations in HCC could contribute to identifying potential driver mutations and discovering novel therapeutic targets in the future. In this article, we summarize the current advances in research on the genetic alterations, including genomic instability, single-nucleotide polymorphisms, somatic mutations and deregulated signaling pathways, implicated in the initiation and progression of HCC. We also attempt to elucidate some of the genetic mechanisms that contribute to making early diagnoses of and developing molecularly targeted therapies for HCC.

Expression and significance of caveolin‑1 in hepatitis B virus‑associated hepatocellular carcinoma

“…However, the exact molecular mechanisms of Cav-1 in the process of angiogenesis have not been thoroughly explored. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide, particularly in the Asia Pacific region (18). Due to late diagnosis and high rate metastasis of HCC, HCC is still associated with poor survival rate (18).…”

“…Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide, particularly in the Asia Pacific region (18). Due to late diagnosis and high rate metastasis of HCC, HCC is still associated with poor survival rate (18). At present, the 5-year survival rate of individuals with HCC is very low at 34% (19).…”

High expression of ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2A predicts poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma

“…Surgery remains the most important treatment strategy for patients with HCC. The 5-year survival rate of patients with early HCC subsequent to resection treatment reaches 50%, although these patients exhibit a high recurrence rate (6,7). Despite advances in the diagnosis (8) and treatment (9) of HCC, the prognosis of this disease remains poor (10).…”

miRNA-346 promotes proliferation, migration and invasion in liver cancer

“…Liver cancer is responsible for primary malignancy of the liver (1)(2)(3) and is currently the third pre-eminent cause of cancer deaths around the world, with over 500,000 people affected by the disease (4,5). Liver cancer cases mostly occur in Africa and Asia, where the high number of hepatitis B and hepatitis C cases strongly predisposes to the development of liver disease and the subsequent development of liver cancer (6,7).…”