The significance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in assessing hepatocellular carcinoma in cirrhotic patients and its association with serum levels of AFP-L3, GPC3 and GP73

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To evaluate the efficacy of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS) in assessing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in cirrhotic patients and its association with serum levels of Alpha-fetoprotein-L3 (AFP-L3), Glypican-3 (GPC3), and Golgi Protein-73 (GP73). Methods A total of 124 patients with cirrhosis treated between January 2020 and January 2023 were selected as study subjects. Within them, seventy one patients with small HCC were set as the observation group, and 53 patients with benign lesions were designated as the control group. All patients underwent CEUS to compare the arterial phase, portal phase, and delayed phase enhancement, as well as CEUS parameters (TTP, PI, ET, ES), and MicroVascular Density (MVD). Tumor markers including AFP-L3, GPC3, and GP73 were also measured. Pearson correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between CEUS parameters and tumor markers, and the diagnostic efficiency of CEUS was analyzed using ROC curve method. Results The number of cases with arterial portal enhancement, PI, ES, MVD, and levels of AFP-L3, GPC3, GP73 in the observation group were 65 cases, (28.93±2.14) dB, (2.42±0.48), (52.35±4.12) strips, (1409.57±15.02) ng/L, (751.48±62.68) pg/mL, (120.43±12.53) ng/mL, respectively, all higher than those in the control group [17 cases, (22.10±1.67) dB, (0.86±0.21), (31.84±2.47) strips, (1213.35±13.74) ng/L, (583.84±49.11) pg/mL, (106.59±10.71) ng/mL], with P<0.05. The TTP and ET in the observation group were (26.12±2.01) s and (19.07±1.73) s, and in the control group were (35.23±2.78) s and (23.64±2.04) s, respectively, with the observation group being lower than those of the control group, P<0.05. Correlation analysis showed that the levels of tumor biomarkers were positively correlated with PI, ES, and MVD, and negatively correlated with TTP and ET (P<0.05). The area under the ROC curve reached 0.972. Conclusion There is a significant correlation between CEUS parameters and serum levels of tumor markers in cirrhotic patients with HCC. CEUS has a high diagnostic value which is worthy of clinical promotion.

Key words: Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound, Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Cirrhosis, Serum Indicators, Correlation Analysis

LIU Cui-cui, HE Yi, QIU Jing-qi, LIANG Shuang, WANG Qian, ZHANG Zhi-bo. The significance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in assessing hepatocellular carcinoma in cirrhotic patients and its association with serum levels of AFP-L3, GPC3 and GP73[J]. Chinese Hepatolgy, 2024, 29(9): 1056-1059.

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