Improved Performance of Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Diagnosis in HCV Cirrhosis with Normal Alanine Transaminase

The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated with elevated AFP and define the patients for whom AFP is effective for surveillance. Data from the NCI Early Detection Research Network phase II HCC bioma...

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Published in:Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention Vol. 26; no. 7; pp. 1085 - 1092
Main Authors: Yang, Ju Dong, Dai, Jianliang, Singal, Amit G, Gopal, Purva, Addissie, Benyam D, Nguyen, Mindie H, Befeler, Alex S, Reddy, K Rajender, Schwartz, Myron, Harnois, Denise M, Yamada, Hiroyuki, Gores, Gregory J, Feng, Ziding, Marrero, Jorge A, Roberts, Lewis R
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Language:English
Published: United States 01.07.2017
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ISSN:1538-7755
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Abstract The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated with elevated AFP and define the patients for whom AFP is effective for surveillance. Data from the NCI Early Detection Research Network phase II HCC biomarker study (233 early-stage HCC and 412 cirrhotic patients) were analyzed. We analyzed 110 early-stage HCC and 362 cirrhotic hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients for external validation. Sensitivity, specificity, and area under the ROC curve (AUC) for HCC were calculated. HCV etiology, non-White race, and serum alanine transaminase (ALT) predicted elevated AFP in cirrhotics. Non-White race and ALT predicted elevated AFP in HCC patients. Higher AUC of AFP for HCC was noted in patients with HBV (0.85) and alcohol (0.84), whereas it was lower in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV; 0.80) and nonviral/alcohol etiology (0.76). The AUC was higher in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than patients with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.91 vs. 0.75, < 0.01). At 90% specificity, the sensitivity of AFP increased from 44% to 74% in Whites with HCV and from 50% to 85% in non-Whites with HCV. There was a trend toward higher AUC in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than those with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.79 vs. 0.69, = 0.10) in the validation cohort. The satisfactory performance of AFP in HCV patients with normal ALT should be further validated. The AFP may serve as a valuable surveillance test in HCV patients with normal ALT. .
AbstractList The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated with elevated AFP and define the patients for whom AFP is effective for surveillance. Data from the NCI Early Detection Research Network phase II HCC biomarker study (233 early-stage HCC and 412 cirrhotic patients) were analyzed. We analyzed 110 early-stage HCC and 362 cirrhotic hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients for external validation. Sensitivity, specificity, and area under the ROC curve (AUC) for HCC were calculated. HCV etiology, non-White race, and serum alanine transaminase (ALT) predicted elevated AFP in cirrhotics. Non-White race and ALT predicted elevated AFP in HCC patients. Higher AUC of AFP for HCC was noted in patients with HBV (0.85) and alcohol (0.84), whereas it was lower in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV; 0.80) and nonviral/alcohol etiology (0.76). The AUC was higher in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than patients with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.91 vs. 0.75, < 0.01). At 90% specificity, the sensitivity of AFP increased from 44% to 74% in Whites with HCV and from 50% to 85% in non-Whites with HCV. There was a trend toward higher AUC in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than those with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.79 vs. 0.69, = 0.10) in the validation cohort. The satisfactory performance of AFP in HCV patients with normal ALT should be further validated. The AFP may serve as a valuable surveillance test in HCV patients with normal ALT. .
Background: The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated with elevated AFP and define the patients for whom AFP is effective for surveillance.Methods: Data from the NCI Early Detection Research Network phase II HCC biomarker study (233 early-stage HCC and 412 cirrhotic patients) were analyzed. We analyzed 110 early-stage HCC and 362 cirrhotic hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients for external validation. Sensitivity, specificity, and area under the ROC curve (AUC) for HCC were calculated.Results: HCV etiology, non-White race, and serum alanine transaminase (ALT) predicted elevated AFP in cirrhotics. Non-White race and ALT predicted elevated AFP in HCC patients. Higher AUC of AFP for HCC was noted in patients with HBV (0.85) and alcohol (0.84), whereas it was lower in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV; 0.80) and nonviral/alcohol etiology (0.76). The AUC was higher in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than patients with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.91 vs. 0.75, P < 0.01). At 90% specificity, the sensitivity of AFP increased from 44% to 74% in Whites with HCV and from 50% to 85% in non-Whites with HCV. There was a trend toward higher AUC in HCV patients with serum ALT ≤40 U/L than those with serum ALT >40 U/L (0.79 vs. 0.69, P = 0.10) in the validation cohort.Conclusions: The satisfactory performance of AFP in HCV patients with normal ALT should be further validated.Impact: The AFP may serve as a valuable surveillance test in HCV patients with normal ALT. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(7); 1085-92. ©2017 AACR.
Author Yamada, Hiroyuki
Singal, Amit G
Gores, Gregory J
Harnois, Denise M
Yang, Ju Dong
Nguyen, Mindie H
Befeler, Alex S
Dai, Jianliang
Reddy, K Rajender
Feng, Ziding
Marrero, Jorge A
Gopal, Purva
Addissie, Benyam D
Schwartz, Myron
Roberts, Lewis R
Author_xml – sequence: 1
  givenname: Ju Dong
  surname: Yang
  fullname: Yang, Ju Dong
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, Minnesota
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  givenname: Jianliang
  surname: Dai
  fullname: Dai, Jianliang
  organization: Department of Biostatistics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
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  givenname: Amit G
  surname: Singal
  fullname: Singal, Amit G
  organization: Division of Digestive and Liver Disease, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas
– sequence: 4
  givenname: Purva
  surname: Gopal
  fullname: Gopal, Purva
  organization: Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas
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  givenname: Benyam D
  surname: Addissie
  fullname: Addissie, Benyam D
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, Minnesota
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  givenname: Mindie H
  surname: Nguyen
  fullname: Nguyen, Mindie H
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology, Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, California
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  givenname: Alex S
  surname: Befeler
  fullname: Befeler, Alex S
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri
– sequence: 8
  givenname: K Rajender
  surname: Reddy
  fullname: Reddy, K Rajender
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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  givenname: Myron
  surname: Schwartz
  fullname: Schwartz, Myron
  organization: Department of General Surgery, The Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, New York
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  givenname: Denise M
  surname: Harnois
  fullname: Harnois, Denise M
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Jacksonville, Florida
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  givenname: Hiroyuki
  surname: Yamada
  fullname: Yamada, Hiroyuki
  organization: Wako Diagnostics, Mountain View, California
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  givenname: Gregory J
  surname: Gores
  fullname: Gores, Gregory J
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, Minnesota
– sequence: 13
  givenname: Ziding
  surname: Feng
  fullname: Feng, Ziding
  organization: Department of Biostatistics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
– sequence: 14
  givenname: Jorge A
  surname: Marrero
  fullname: Marrero, Jorge A
  organization: Division of Digestive and Liver Disease, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas
– sequence: 15
  givenname: Lewis R
  surname: Roberts
  fullname: Roberts, Lewis R
  email: roberts.lewis@mayo.edu
  organization: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, Minnesota. roberts.lewis@mayo.edu
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Snippet The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated with elevated...
Background: The utility of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance is controversial. We aimed to identify factors associated...
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SubjectTerms Adult
Aged
Alanine Transaminase - blood
Alcoholism - complications
alpha-Fetoproteins - analysis
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - blood
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - diagnosis
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - pathology
Early Detection of Cancer - methods
Female
Hepacivirus - isolation & purification
Hepatitis B virus - isolation & purification
Humans
Liver Cirrhosis - blood
Liver Cirrhosis - etiology
Liver Neoplasms - blood
Liver Neoplasms - diagnosis
Liver Neoplasms - pathology
Male
Middle Aged
Neoplasm Staging
ROC Curve
Title Improved Performance of Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Diagnosis in HCV Cirrhosis with Normal Alanine Transaminase
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