title: Serological and histological indices of hepatocellular carcinoma and tumor volume doubling time.
abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) frequently develops in cirrhotic liver and is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. The tumor volume doubling time (TVDT) reflects the natural tumor growth rate and is an indicator of the biological malignant potential of a tumor. The present study aimed to elucidate the association between the serological and histological indices of HCC and TVDT. TVDT was analyzed for 53 HCCs by measuring the enlargement of the tumor diameter on dynamic computed tomography. Differences in TVDT were compared among histological grades of HCC differentiation. The α-fetoprotein (AFP) doubling time (T2AFP) for 44 HCCs with AFP levels >200 ng/ml was calculated and the differences in T2AFP were compared according to the histological grade of HCC differentiation and positivity forLens culinarisagglutinin-reactive fraction of α-fetoprotein (AFP-L3). Among these 44 HCCs, the correlation between T2AFP and TVDT was analyzed for the 27 tumors for which TVDT could be calculated. The mean ± standard deviation (SD) TVDT in Edmondson grade 1 (Ed1), Ed2 and Ed3 HCC was 138.3±110.3, 94.9±91.5 and 32.2±20.8 days, respectively (P<0.05). The mean ± SD T2AFP in Ed2 and Ed3 HCC was 121.0±167.5 and 37.3±24.6 days, respectively (P<0.01). TVDT and T2AFP decreased with histological dedifferentiation of HCC. The mean ± SD T2AFP in the AFP-L3-positive and -negative groups was 63.2±101.2 and 191.9±209.9 days, respectively, with a statistically significant difference between the groups (P<0.01). A significant correlation was observed between T2AFP and TVDT (correlation coefficient, 0.70; P<0.01). A significant correlation was also observed among TVDT, serological indices and histological grades of HCC differentiation. A short T2AFP and/or AFP-L3-positivity were shown to reflect a poorly differentiated HCC histopathology and a higher malignant potential.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shingaki
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tamai
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Kosaku
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Moribata
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Shotaro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Enomoto
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Hisanobu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Deguchi
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Izumi
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Inoue
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maekita
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Mikitaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iguchi
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama City, Wakayama 641-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ichinose
keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma; histological differentiation; tumor volume doubling time; α-fetoprotein; α-fetoprotein doubling time