Radiomics of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular CarcinomaWe propose a radiomics approach to identify prognostic biomarkers of HCC and provide patients with some reasonable advice for their therapies.
Intravascular Ultrasound for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Staging
Hepatocellular CarcinomaTo diagnose hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to determine the extent of the disease, a triphasic CT scan or a magnetic resonance imaging are required. The characterization of hepatic nodules is more difficult when the HCC lesions have a diameter of less than 2 cm. Since accuracy in the assessment of the number and the size of HCC nodules, as well as of the invasion of blood vessels is crucial to determine outcome after liver transplantation due to tumour recurrence, there is a need for techniques with a higher definition potential. As a consequence, to improve outcome and to optimize organ allocation, patients on the liver transplantation waiting list might benefit from intravascular ultrasound as an additional examination to complete the pre-transplant tumour staging process.
Searching for the Liver Cancer-Related Biomarkers
Hepatocellular CarcinomaHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been the leading cause of cancer death in Taiwan. About 6000-8000 people died of this cancer every year in Taiwan. Though regular sonographic examination can early detect small HCC and there are many therapeutic modalities for HCC, the therapeutic results remains unsatisfactory. Though Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and des-γ-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) are used as the tumor markers for diagnosis of HCCs, these two markers are not good enough for the early detection of small HCCs. To improve the survival, further investigations of the early diagnostic markers are still needed. In this current project, we applied the proteomic method to identify the HCC biomarkers.
Microbiota Study in Liver Transplanted Patients
CirrhosisHepatocellular Carcinoma2 moreMany studies describe the relationship between microbiota alteration and the occurrence of metabolic, alcoholic or inflammatory liver diseases. Nevertheless, the modifications of microbiota during liver transplantation (LT) as well as its implication are poorly studied. Similarly, only the intestinal microbiota is studied in this context, and no data are available on the biliary microbiota, even if it is known that bile microbiota can interfere with hepatobiliary diseases. This study proposes a clinical and biological in-depth follow-up with multiple sampling of liver transplanted patients to study biliary and intestinal microbiota alterations along LT, as well as bile acids metabolism in corresponding fluids. Indeed, in recipient samples as saliva, blood, urine, and feces can be taken before LT, and surgeons can easily perform bile sampling during LT. In donors all samples can be taken during liver removal. This offers the opportunity to have a microbiotic landscape of individuals without liver disease (donor), and patients suffering from a chronic liver disease or a liver cancer before and after transplantation. Also, in Grenoble University hospital, in case of biliary anastomotic incongruence, a biliary stent is placed during LT in 60% of recipients. This stent is removed by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) within 6 months after LT, offering a second opportunity to obtain bile samples in transplanted patients, after the early post-LT period. Patients who do not require a biliary stent will also be included for the study of secondary objectives, as intestinal microbiota is very poorly characterized in liver transplanted patients too. A portion of the patients without biliary stent, may also develop an anastomotic biliary stricture requiring an ERCP. If this ERCP is realized within the follow-up period of the study, the patient will also be included in the primary objective of the study. These multiple and sequential samples will allow a complete analysis of microbiota changes in LT patients and aim to answer to 3 questions: What are the modifications of intestinal and biliary microbiomes during LT? What is the influence of bile acids' composition on intestinal and biliary microbiota? What are the relationships between microbiome alterations and the emergence of LT complications?
Novel Molecular Spectrometric Biomarkers in Blood Plasma as an Early Diagnostic Tool in HCC
Liver CancerHepatocellular Carcinoma2 moreDue to providing valuable clinical information while being minimally invasive, blood-based testing will most likely be a prerequisite for future large-scale screening of high-risk populations. As a variety of pathological processes, including carcinogenesis, may cause changes in both the concentration and the structure and spatial arrangement of body biomolecules, the spectroscopic analysis of blood-based derivatives appears to be an appropriate tool for the early detection thereof. The differences observed in the spectral response of healthy individuals and patients may also be specific to a particular type/stage of the disease and, thus, may serve as a reliable diagnostic marker. In order to find sufficiently specific and sensitive biomarkers of early stages of degenerative and cancerous diseases, the co-applicant group at the Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCT Prague), developed a unique approach for the spectroscopic analysis of blood plasma. Using the highly specialized, structure-sensitive methods of chiroptical spectroscopy (electronic circular dichroism - ECD, Raman optical activity - ROA) combined with conventional infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopy, the first pilot studies yielded promising results with respect to the identification of spectral markers for pancreatic cancer, colon cancer and type 1 diabetes mellitus. In addition, metabolomics appears to be a very progressive approach to finding potentially suitable molecules to distinguish between healthy and cancer-affected individuals. Therefore, the investigators believes that this multimodal approach will allow for the identification of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In our research, the focus will be on the identification of novel biomarkers in blood plasma that would exhibit sufficient sensitivity and specificity to detect early and potentially curable HCC stages, and that would be potentially useful for routine screening of this disease in well-defined at-risk groups.
Heterogeneity and Evolution of hepatoceLlular Carcinoma in Post-transplant HCC Recurrence
Hepatocellular Carcinoma RecurrentLiver Transplant; ComplicationsObjective of Study: This study will evaluate the heterogeneity and evolution pathway between primary HCC and tumor relapse after liver transplant. According to the "Seed-Soil" theory, the primary hypothesis of this study is that HCC patients with different molecular-subtype experience altered different pattern of post-transplant recurrence, thus may have altered postoperative Recurrence-Free Survival (RFS). Because the donors' liver construct different microenvironment for CTC(circulating tumor cells) colonization. The investigators design this translational study to ①explore potential high recurrent risk HCC molecular-subtypes which might benefit from neoadjuvant systematic therapy or early adjuvant systematic therapy;②identify the molecular subtype heterogeneity of primary and recurrent HCC to guide the precision medicine.
Study of the Early Occurrence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) in Egyptian HCV Infected Patients...
Hepatitis CTo evaluate the early detection of HCC in patients Taking Sofosbuvir and Daclatasvir.
Circulating Tumor Cells for Hepatocellular Carcinoma
CarcinomaHepatocellular1 moreTo explore the clinical value of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) measurement for Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients.
11C-Acetate PET/CT Non-FDG-Avid Tumors
Soft Tissue SarcomasThyroid Cancer10 moreF18-FDG is the widely used PET tracer in the routine practice of oncologic disease imaging using the technology of PET-CT. However, FDG-avidity is a characteristic of the individual tumor. There are various types of human malignancies, which are not taking FDG in access. In these cases FDG is not a sensitive tracer of imaging. In search for other tumor PET tracers, C11-Acetate has been shown recently in a few early studies to have a potential value in imaging of non-FDG-avid tumors. The purpose of the current study is to assess the role of 11C-acetate PET in various tumors, which often are not detected by 18F-FDG and were not widely assessed until now.
Functional-three-dimensional Reconstruction of Liver by 99MTc-GSA-SPECT Scan
CirrhosisHepatic CarcinomaThe aims of this study were divided into three parts: To develop a new software to carry out the functional-three- dimensional-reconstruction of the liver by 99mTc-GSA-SPECT scintigraphy To probe a new dynamic model of the metabolism of the 99mTc-GSA. To evaluate the liver function by 99mTc-GSA-SPECT scintigraphy before surgical treatment. Study design: Collectivity type: Prospective,randomized, controlled, multi-central clinical study. Patients: The subjects were from different hospitals including: Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH). Study arrangement: This study was consisted of three parts: