Journal of Liver Cancer

Original Article

Systematic review of metabolomic profiles linked to liver cancer: Bao Le Thai Tran, Ngoc Hong Cao, Tung Hoang; J Liver Cancer. 2026;26(1):124-146. Published online December 2, 2025; DOI: https://doi.org/10.17998/jlc.2025.10.27

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Abstract PDF Supplementary Material: Backgrounds/Aims
Increasing evidence indicates that metabolites play a significant role in the pathogenesis of liver cancer and have potential as biomarkers for early detection. This review summarizes the current literature on the utility of metabolomic profiling as a screening strategy for early diagnosis of liver cancer.
Methods
We searched PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science for studies published between 2004 and 2024 that examined metabolite alterations in liver cancer. The metabolites differentially expressed in liver cancer versus healthy controls, cirrhosis, and hepatic B virus cases are summarized. The diagnostic performance of the metabolite-based models was also evaluated, highlighting their potential as early detection biomarkers for liver cancer.
Results
A total of 96 studies were included in this review, encompassing case-only, case-control, nested case-control, and cohort designs. The analysis identified taurine and taurochenodeoxycholic acid to be consistently associated with an increased risk of liver cancer, supported by findings from both the discovery and validation cohorts. Notably, a diagnostic model incorporating 10 metabolites including taurine and taurochenodeoxycholic acid, achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.86 (95% confidence interval, 0.82-0.88), indicating strong discriminatory power for early liver cancer detection. Nevertheless, heterogeneity across studies was observed, largely owing to differences in biological sample types and metabolomic platforms.
Conclusions
This review highlights the significant roles of taurine and taurochenodeoxycholic acid in liver cancer development. Future research should prioritize the standardization of analytical methodologies, increased sample sizes, and integration of metabolomics with other omics layers to enhance our understanding of liver cancer biology and improve biomarker accuracy and clinical utility.

Review Article

Liquid biopsy for early detection and therapeutic monitoring of hepatocellular carcinoma: Eun-Ji Choi, Young-Joon Kim; J Liver Cancer. 2022;22(2):103-114. Published online September 22, 2022; DOI: https://doi.org/10.17998/jlc.2022.09.08

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19 Citations

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material

Advances in our knowledge of the molecular characteristics of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have enabled significant progress in the detection and therapeutic prediction of HCC. As a non-invasive alternative to tissue biopsy, liquid biopsy examines circulating cellular components such as exosomes, nucleic acids, and cell-free DNA found in body fluids (e.g., urine, saliva, ascites, and pleural effusions) and provides information about tumor characteristics. Technical advances in liquid biopsy have led to the increasing adoption of diagnostic and monitoring applications for HCC. This review summarizes the various analytes, ongoing clinical trials, and case studies of United States Food and Drug Administrationapproved in vitro diagnostic applications for liquid biopsy, and provides insight into its implementation in managing HCC.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

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Case Report

A Case of Simultaneous Resection of Recurrent Combined Hepatocellular Cholangiocarcinoma and Hypovascular Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Tae Hyung Kim, Soon Ho Um, Sang Jung Park, Seung Woon Park, Han Ah Lee, Yeon Seok Seo, Young Dong Yu, Dong-Sik Kim, Joo Young Kim; J Liver Cancer. 2017;17(1):94-99. Published online March 31, 2017; DOI: https://doi.org/10.17998/jlc.17.1.94

2,945 Views
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Abstract PDF: Liver cancer is more complex to treat compared to cancers in other organs, since liver function should be considered. In addition, only a few patients can be applied curative treatment due to advanced stage at diagnosis. Therefore, early stage detection is important and has been increased through screening and surveillance programs using image modalities recently. However, it is still difficult to diagnose small or hypovascular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) even using advanced image modalties. In particular, hypovascular HCCs do not show arterial contrast enhancement which is a typical finding of HCC on computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Those also account for a considerable portion of early HCC. We present 54 yearsold man who had recurrent hypervascular and hypovascular nodules on three phase CT and gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI. The nodules were removed by surgical resection and confirmed as combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma and well differentiated HCC respectively.

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