Serum Soluble Cd25 in Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Shall We Be Able to Change the Natural History?

Abstract

Background. Although hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancy related IntroductionHepatocellular carcinoma is one of the most serious and life threatening complications of chronic liver disease. It represents the 5 th most common malignancy in men, the 7 th in women and the 3 rd malignancy related mortality worldwide. Curative treatment strategy can be achieved if detected in early stages [1][2][3][4]. The role of serum α fetoprotein (AFP), the widely used classical biomarker for HCC, has been stepped down in the recent European and American surveillance guidelines because of low sensitivity and specificity. This is based on the knowledge that almost 80% of small HCCs do not show increased levels of AFP, and the sensitivity decreases to 25% in tumors smaller than 3 cm [5][6][7][8]. Looking for a new marker with a better