Objective To compare the Barcelona clinic liver cancer staging classification (BCLC), the Japan integrated staging score (JIS), the cancer of the liver Italian program score (CLIP) and Chinese staging system in terms of their ability to predict outcomes and to guide option of therapy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in China.Methods Clinical data of 861 HCC patients from Zhongshan Hospital between 2001 and 2002 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were classified acccording to different staging systems. Survival for patients in different stages and the effects of therapeutic methods on survival time were compared. Results BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging system showed the ability in predicting survival for patients in different staging. CLIP failed to show significant difference in survival rates for each subgroup. There was no significant difference in survival rate between surgery and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE)/transarterial embolization (TAE) for patients classified as BCLC stage C, CLIP scores more than 3 or Chinese stage Ⅲ a.The survival rate, however, was higher in patients received operation than those received TACE/TAE if they were classified as earlier stages. Conclusions The BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging systems show prospective ability for Chinese HCC patients in prediction outcomes, whereas the BCLC and the Chinese staging systems are better at both predicting outcomes and guiding the option of treatment.

This study was aimed at isolating a peptide with hypoglycemic activity from dried red deer antler. A peptide from dried red deer antler of Tarim in Xingjiang was extracted with acetate buffer(pH 3. 5), followed by precipitation with ethanol, ultrafiltration and separation via ion exchange chromatography, gel filtration and reversed phase chromatography. The molecular mass of the peptide was detected via MALDI TOF/MS and the peptide was identified by LC-MS/MS. The activities of the peptide to promote islet β cells proliferation and recovery the damage induced by streptozotocin(STZ)were detected by MTT, and the effect of the peptide on glucose consumption of hepatocyte was determined. The peptide, named as CAP, was obtained from dried red deer antler through purification with the molecular mass of 6 804 via MALDI TOF/MS. The result of LC-MS/MS and the comparison in relative database showed that CAP was a novel peptide. CAP stimulated the proliferation of pancreatic cells and recovery of STZ-damaged pancreatic cells, as well as increased glucose consumption of HepG2.