Serum Golgi protein 73 is not a suitable diagnostic marker for hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract

Golgi protein 73 (GP73) has been suggested as a serum marker for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, this has been challenged in recent years. In the present study, we found that the serum GP73 increased in HCC patients with cirrhosis but not in those without cirrhosis. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis demonstrated that serum GP73 had poor performance for differentiating HCC patients from cirrhosis patients. In addition, the immunohistochemistry revealed that aberrant expression of GP73 was primarily observed in cirrhotic and tumor liver tissues from both cirrhosis and HCC patients, but rarely in non-cirrhotic liver tissues from HCC patients without cirrhosis. Moreover, serum Alpha-fetoprotein in HCC patients with cirrhosis decreased sharply after resection of tumor tissue, while the serum GP73 remained stable. These data indicated that the background of cirrhosis was related to the elevation of serum GP73 in HCC patients. In conclusion, serum GP73 is not a suitable diagnostic marker for HCC.

Assessment of serum Golgi protein 73 as a biomarker for the diagnosis of significant fibrosis in patients with chronic HBV infection

“…[16][17][18][19] The increased serum GP73 in HCC is argued to be attributed to the presence of cirrhosis rather than HCC. 20 This concept is in line with a previous report that serum GP73 increases in patients with liver diseases in the absence of HCC. 21 The level of serum GP73 correlates with the severity of liver inflammation in acute liver disease and fibrosis in CLD.…”

“…Recently, an established hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) biomarker, serum Golgi protein 73 (GP73), was reported to be correlated with disease severity in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) . The increased serum GP73 in HCC is argued to be attributed to the presence of cirrhosis rather than HCC . This concept is in line with a previous report that serum GP73 increases in patients with liver diseases in the absence of HCC .…”

“…ALT (IU/mL) 31 (19,43) 68 (42, 97) 32 (24,47) 47 (20,65) 36 (25,50) 34 (20,58) <.001 AST (IU/mL) 25 (20,30) 42 (31,60) 25 (21,32) 34 (26,43) 27 (24,37) 25 (20,40) <.001…”

Knockdown of Golgi phosphoprotein 73 blocks the trafficking of matrix metalloproteinase‐2 in hepatocellular carcinoma cells and inhibits cell invasion

“…[16][17][18][19][20] Furthermore, some studies even indicate that GP73 is a suitable diagnostic biomarker not only for HCC but also for liver cirrhosis. 21,22 Although studies indicate that GP73 is a remarkable biomarker in clinical diagnostics, its function remains unclear. In recent years, some studies have indicated that highly expressed GP73 promotes the migration and invasion of HCC, 8,23 but the molecular processes are far more complex.…”

CD24 as a Novel Predictive Biomarker in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Friend or Foe?

“…Regardless, its accuracy has been widely questioned with reported sensitivity and specificity of approximately 60% and 80%, respectively. Moreover, a number of other biomarkers have been proposed as alternatives including glycipan 3, serum Golgi protein 73, and des-gamma carboxyprothrombin but further studies have failed to demonstrate superior results to those of AFP [9][10][11].…”