Annexin A2 as a biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma in Egyptian patients

摘要

AIM To investigate the clinical utility of serum annexin A2(ANXA2) as a diagnostic marker for early hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).METHODS This study was performed in HCC Clinic of Ain Shams University Hospitals, Cairo, Egypt and included: Group 1: Fifty patients with early stage HCC(Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage A); Group 2: Twenty five patients with chronic liver disease; and Control Group: Fifteen healthy, age-and sex-matched subjects who were seronegative for viral hepatitis markers. The followinglaboratory investigations were done: Viral hepatitis markers [hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis C virus(HCV) antibodies], HCV RNA in HCV antibody-positive patients, serum alpha fetoprotein(AFP), and serum ANXA2 levels.RESULTS In this study, 88% of HCC patients(n = 44) were HCVpositive, while HBV infection represented only 8% of all HCC patients(n = 4); and two patients were negative for both viral markers. A highly significant difference was found between patients with HCC and chronic liver disease as well as controls with regard to serum ANXA2 levels(130, IQR 15-240; 15, IQR 15-17; and 17, IQR 15-30 ng/m L, respectively). The area under the curve of ANXA2 was 0.865; the cut-off value was established to be 18 ng/mL with a diagnostic sensitivity of 74% and a specificity of 88%, while the sensitivity and specificity of AFP at the cut-off value of 200 ng/dL were 20% and 100%, respectively.CONCLUSION Serum ANXA2 may serve as a biomarker for the early detection of HCC.