C-reactive Protein and Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Analysis of Its Relationships to Tumor Factors

Overview

Journal Clin Pract (Lond)

Specialty General Medicine

Date 2018 Jun 29

PMID 29951199

Citations 13

Authors

Brian I Carr

Hikmet Akkiz

Vito Guerra

Oguz Uskudar

Sedef Kuran

Umit Karaogullarindan

Salih Tokmak

Tugsan Balli

Abdulalh Ulku

Tolga Akcam

Anil Delik

Burcu Arslan

Figen Doran

Kendal Yalcin

Engin Altntas

Aysegul Ozakyol

Mehmet Yucesoy

Halil Ibrahim BahCeci

Kamil Yalcin Polat

Nazim Ekinci

Halis Simsek

Necat Ormeci

Abdulalh Sonsuz

Mehmet Demir

Murat Kilic

Ahmet Uygun

Ali Demir

Sezai Yilmaz

Yaman Tokat

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a blood marker for inflammation and is an independent prognostic factor for many human cancers. Combined with albumin levels, it forms the basis of the Glasgow Index for cancer prognosis. We reviewed the literature on CRP and HCC and also evaluated blood CRP levels and combination CRP plus albumin levels in a large HCC cohort. In order to understand the prognostic significance of CRP, we retrospectively examined a large HCC cohort and examined the relationship of CRP levels to tumor parameters. We report, that CRP alone and CRP plus albumin combined as well, significantly correlated with parameters of HCC aggressiveness, such as maximum tumor dimension (MTD), portal vein thrombosis (PVT) and blood alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, both as individual parameters and all parameters together (Aggressiveness Index). This extends current thinking, to suggest a possible explanation for the usefulness of blood CRP levels in HCC prognostication.

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