The purpose of this study was to conduct a comprehensive study of the clinical correlation between the alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level at diagnosis and pathological grades, progression, and survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A total of 78,743 patients in Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER)-registered HCC was analyzed. The AFP test results for patients with HCC were mainly recorded as AFP-negative and AFP-positive. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the AFP level at diagnosis was an independent risk factor of pathological grade (odds ratio [OR], 2.559; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.075–3.157; P < 0.001), TNM-7 stage (OR, 2.794; CI, 2.407–3.242; P < 0.001), and tumor size (OR, 1.748; 95% CI, 1.574–1.941; P < 0.001). Multivariable Cox regression analyses identified AFP level as an independent predictor of survival risk of patients with HCC who did not undergo surgery (hazard ratio [HR], 1.660; 95% CI, 1.534–1.797; P < 0.001), and those who underwent surgery (HR, 1.534; 95% CI, 1.348–1.745; P < 0.001). The AFP level at diagnosis was an independent risk predictor associated with pathological grade, progression, and survival. Further, surgery may not significantly reverse the adverse effects of AFP-positive compared with AFP-negative.

Background Our purpose was to establish and validate a nomogram model in early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients for predicting the cancer‐specific survival (CSS). Methods We extracted eligible data of relevant patients between 2010 and 2015 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Further, we divided all patients into two groups (training and validation cohorts) at random (7:3). Nomogram was established using effective risk factors based on univariate and multivariate analysis. The effective performance of nomogram was evaluated using concordance index (C‐index), calibration plots, decision curve analysis (DCA), and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC). Results We selected 3620 patients with early HCC including the training cohort (70%, 2536) and the validation cohort (30%, 1084). The nomogram‐related C‐indexes were 0.755 (95% CI: 0.739–0.771) and 0.737 (95% CI: 0.712–0.762), in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. The calibration plots showed good consistency of 3‐and 5‐year CSS between the actual observation and the nomogram prediction. The 3‐, 5‐year DCA curves also indicated that the nomogram has excellent clinical utility. The 3‐, 5‐year area under curve (AUC) of ROC in the training cohort were 0.783, 0.779, respectively, and 0.767, 0.766 in the validation cohort, respectively. With the establishment of nomogram, a risk stratification system was also established that could divide all patients into three risk groups, and the CSS in different groups (i.e., low risk, intermediate risk, and high risk) had a good regional division. Conclusions We developed a practical nomogram in early HCC patients for predicting the CSS, and a risk stratification system follow arisen, which provided an applicable tool for clinical management.

A portal vein diameter >13 mm and age >50 years are independent risk factors for PVST after LS in cirrhotic patients with hypersplenism due to portal hypertension.

Marital status has been reported as an independent prognostic factor for survival in various cancers, but it has been rarely studied in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated by surgical resection. We retrospectively investigated Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) population-based data and identified 13,408 cases of HCC with surgical treatment between 1998 and 2013. The patients were categorized according to marital status, as “married,” “never married,” “widowed,” or “divorced/separated.” The 5-year HCC cause-specific survival (HCSS) data were obtained, and Kaplan–Meier methods and multivariate Cox regression models were used to ascertain whether marital status is also an independent prognostic factor for survival in HCC. Patients in the widowed group had the higher proportion of women, a greater proportion of older (>60 years) patients, more frequency in latest year of diagnosis (2008-2013), a greater number of tumors at TNM stage I/II, and more prevalence at localized SEER Stage, all of which were statistically significant within-group comparisons (P < 0.001). Marital status was demonstrated to be an independent prognostic factor by multivariate survival analysis (P < 0.001). Married patients had better 5-year HCSS than did unmarried patients (46.7% vs 37.8%) (P < 0.001); conversely, widowed patients had lowest HCSS compared with all other patients, overall, at each SEER stage, and for different tumor sizes. Marital status is an important prognostic factor for survival in patients with HCC treated with surgical resection. Widowed patients have the highest risk of death compared with other groups.

Cancer cells can escape antitumor immune responses by exploiting inhibitory immune checkpoints. Immune checkpoint therapy, mainly including anti-CTLA-4 therapy and anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy, can enhance antitumor immune responses by blocking the inhibitory signals of the immune system. This therapy has produced clinical advances in a fraction of patients. Deeper insight into the tumor microenvironment and immune checkpoint inhibitors will improve this therapy. Here, we review immune checkpoint inhibitors that prevent tumor immune escape and recent clinical studies of immune checkpoint therapy. We also compare the efficacy of different combination immunotherapies, describe how the relationship between the gut microbiome and immune system can determine the therapeutic outcomes for immune checkpoint inhibitors and introduce several novel immune checkpoints that are potential targets for antitumor immunotherapy in the future.