It has been well known that liver cirrhosis, regardless of its etiology, is an important predisposing factor in hepatocarcinogenesis. However, the type of cirrhosis in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)-bearing liver varies not only by geographic areas but also with the cirteria applied for morphological classification of cirrhosis. To elucidate the relationship between the nodule size of HCC-bearing cirrhotic liver and clinicopathologic features, we measured cirrhotic nodule areas of 49 surgically resected HCC cases using image analyzer. The morphological type of cirrhosis was predominantly macronodular(49%), and followed by mixed(37%) and micronodular(14%). Seventy percent of the cases showed seropositivity for HBsAg. The average area of cirrhotic nodules was significantly larger in HBsAg-positive cases(mean: 6.14 mm2) than that of HBsAg-negative cases(mean: 2.5 mm2)(p<0.05), and their size was bigger in cases with grossly expansile pattern of HCC than those cases with infiltrative ones(p<0.05). Based on the above findings, we assume that seropositivity of HBsAg may influence on the regenerative activity of cirrhotic nodules and also subsequent increase of risk for further development of HCC. The presence of cirrhohsis and nodule size seem to be the important contributing factors to determine the growing patterns of HCC.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

To evaluate the tissue expression rate and pattenr of HBsAg and HBcAg in tumors and peritumoral livers, an immunohistochemical study was undertaken on 47 surgically resected hepatocellular carcinomas(HCCs). The results are as follows. 1. Patient's sera were positive for HBsAg in 40 cases(85.1%). In the remaining 7 cases, the tumor and peritumoral liver expressed neither HBcAg nor HbSaG, suggesting that they were caused by other etiologies than hepatitis B virus. 2. The peritumoral liver had HBsAg and HBcAg in 95.0% and 27.5% among the 40 cases, respectively. But the tumor expressed HBsAg in 50.0% and HBcAg in none. 3. The expression of HBsAg within the tumor and both HBsAg and HBcAg in the peritumoral liver tended to be more frequent in the pretreated cases before surgery. 4. Edmondson-Steiner grade IV tumors revealed a lower expression rate of HBsAg than the low grade tumors(p<0.05). Incases with cirrhosis at peritumoral tissues, HBcAg was less frequently found than in those without cirrhosis. The majority of tissue HBsAg and HBcAg was represented as groups of positive cells. These results suggest that, during the development and progression of HCCs, the HBcAg containing cells are repeatedly removed and the HBcAg negative cells are selected, because cellular expression of HBcAg is the target of host immune response.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

With advance of diagnostic imaging technics, the detection rate of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has become much increased, but the questions whether the growth pattern and histologic nature of the HCC keep maintain the original gross and microscopic features with its advancement of tumor size remain still unclear. We reviewed 39 surgically resected hepatocellular carcinomas(HCCs) with a tumor size less than or equal to 3 cm in diameter(s-HCC), and their gross and microscopic features were compared with the HCCs bigger than 3 cm (i-HCC, 199 cases). Single nodular type(SN) was the most common gross type(60%) in s-HCCs, and was followed by single nodular type with perinodular extension(SNPE; 15.4%), multinodular-discrete type(10.3%) and multinodular-confluent type(5.1%). These figures contrasted to SNPE(42.2%) and SN(20.6%) in the i-HCCs. Of the 39 s-HCCs, 25 cases(64.1%) were encapsulated, and 14 cases(36%) demonstrated intratumoral fibrous septations, being contrasted to the i-HCCs in which fibrous septa formation was mord prominent but complete capsule formation was found only in 40.2% of the larger ones. Microscopically, the trabecular type was the most frequent one(53.9%), and increased with their size while the compact type transformed into trabecular one. Thirty three cases(84.6%) were associated with macronodular cirrhosis. Seropositivity for HBsAg was found in 26 cases(66.6%), and high serum alpha-fetoprotein level over 500 IU/L was found in 15 s-HCC cases(38.4%), while 53.3% in i-HCC. The above results suggest that HCCs change their pathologic features by increase of their size, and a comparison of the details with regard to the possible mechanisms involved is discussed.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular*

Fifty cases of hepatocellularcarcinoma were studied using retrospective flow cytometric(FCM) and image cytometric(ICM) DNA analysis to determine the prevalence of aneuploid cell population and whether they were associated with any particular clinico-pathologic findings. At the same time, we compared the difference between FCM and ICM. The materials were prepared from 50 micrometer cut of paraffin embedded blocks. The DNA modal values, which could be defined in 42 cases by FCM with 74% aneuploidy and in 50 cases by ICM with 76% aneuploidy. So 95% of the cases had concordant DNA ploidy results by both techniques of FCM and ICM. Abnormal DNA pattern was correlated with age(<50), presence of cirrhosis, pathologic grade and some pathologic types(p<0.05), but was not correlated with presence of HBsAg, sex, alphafeto protein, and alcohol history(p>0.05). Also we found that ICM technique was easier to perform and interprete.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular*

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular*

No abstract availalbe.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular*

Sclerosing hepatic carcinoma (SHC) is composed of slender cords or small nests of tumor cells with peripheral palisading, and abundant intervening sclerosis. The tumor seems to have the histologic features of both hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocarcinoma. To evaluate the phenotypic expression of SHC and to investigate its cellular origin, immunohistochemical studies on three cases of SHC were performed. In all cases, the tumor cells showed positive staining for cytokeratins AE1, AE3 and 19, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and epithelial membrane antigen (EMA). The expressions of cytokeratins AE1 and 19 were stronger in the palisading cells than the interior of the cords and nests. Conversely, CEA and EMA were expressed mainly in the inner portion. Alpha-fetoprotein was expressed in only one case, mainly in the palisading cells. In summary, SHC has the histological as well as the immunohistochemical profiles intermediate between HCC and cholangiocarcinoma, and the immunohistochemical profile suggests that SHC arises from primitive hepatoblast with a tendency of differentiation to the bile duct epithelium.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

To evaluate the effect of preoperative treatment on proliferative activity and prognosis of the hepatocellular carcinomas(HCCs), fifty-three surgically resected HCCs were studied. Twenty cases were treated preoperatively and thirty-three were not treated before surgery. The proliferation index(PI, % of proliferating cell nuclear antigen positive cells) of the remaining cancer cases(35.41). Although PI was similar among gross types and among histologic grades, tumors of the expanding type and of the histologic grade I revealed distinctly low PI in pretreated cases. Two-year survival rate was not significantly different between pretreated and not-pretreated cases(67.4 vs 52.7). But the differences between gross types(p<0.05) and between histologic grades(p<0.01) were significant. Total necrosis of tumor occurred in five pretreated patients, all of whom were alive during two-year follow-up. Smaller HCCs showed better prognosis(p<0.01). Although PI appeared not correlated well with the two tear survival rate, the pretreated HCCs preoperative modalities induce tumor necrosis, but do not reduce the proliferative activity of tumor cells significantly, and that pretreatment does not affect the long-term prognosis of HCCs except for the accasions of total necrosis of tumor.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular