| Theme |
Algorithm for Diagnosis and Treatment of Liver Cancer |
| Title |
Clinical Utility of Tumor Markers for Screening of Hepatocellular Carcinoma |
| Author |
Toshifumi Tada |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| Author |
Takashi Kumada |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| Author |
Hidenori Toyoda |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| Author |
Seiki Kiriyama |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| Author |
Makoto Tanikawa |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| Author |
Yasuhiro Hisanaga |
Department of Gastroenterology, Ogaki Municipal Hospital |
| [ Summary ] |
Three tumor markers, alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), lens culinaris agglutinin-reactive fraction of AFP (AFP-L3), and des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) are currently used for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in Japanese clinical practice. Despite its low specificity, AFP is highly sensitive for HCC when evaluated along with liver function test values. In contrast, AFP-L3 has a low degree of sensitivity but has a very high level of specificity for HCC. DCP has both high sensitivity and specificity for HCC. Recently, the combination of some of these tumor markers has been recommended for more accurate diagnosis of HCC. We found that the combination of AFP-L3 and DCP provided accurate diagnosis of HCC. Positive rates increased in association with the increase in HCC stage for all three tumor markers. The elevation of AFP-L3 or DCP strongly reflected several pathologic features of advanced HCC. |