title: Stem cell therapy improves the outcome of liver resection in cirrhotics.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Significant proportions of liver cirrhotic patients develop hepatocellular carcinoma and have to undergo hepatic resection. The compromised cirrhotic liver cannot withstand further removal of hepatic tissue, thus, leading to postoperative complication and death.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, we enrolled 20 patients having liver cirrhosis with hepatocellular carcinoma and randomly assigned them into two groups to receive autologous stem cells or placebo.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After 3 weeks, all participants underwent liver resection and were followed for 12 weeks postoperative. We observed that the group receiving preoperative stem cell therapy had shown a significant improvement in all parameters of liver function and had no postoperative complications compared to the group treated with placebo, which showed no improvement in liver parameters and had postoperative complications.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In conclusion, autologous stem cell therapy can improve the surgical outcome in cirrhotic livers and should be considered as an adjuvant treatment in such patients undergoing hepatic resection.
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, Liver Research Unit, Stem Cell Research Division, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. ahismail2002@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Alaa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ismail
authors.forename: Ossama
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Fouad
authors.forename: Amr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abdelnasser
authors.forename: Andaleeb
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chowdhury
authors.forename: Abdulhafez
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Selim
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006498:Hepatectomy; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous