Mi Na Kim

UNLABELLED: Early detection of liver cirrhosis in its subclinical stage is of paramount importance to identify high-risk individuals for developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study investigated whether transient elastography (TE) can identify patients with subclinical cirrhosis (SCC) who are at increased risk of developing HCC among chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients without clinical evidence of cirrhosis. A total of 2,876 CHB patients without clinical cirrhosis who received TE examina

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third-leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Although hepatitis B still remains the most common risk factor worldwide, chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the driving force for the increased incidence of HCC especially in Western countries and Japan. In hepatitis B virus (HBV)-endemic areas, after successful vaccination programs against HBV, chronic HCV infection is now emerging as an important cause of chronic liver diseases. Unlike p

Radiological response assessment criteria in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have evolved to accurately evaluate tumor responses. The WHO criteria and the subsequent Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) evaluate change in tumor size; however, these criteria generally ignore tumor necrosis and therefore may underestimate treatment responses. Thus, a panel of experts of the European Association for the Study of Liver (EASL) amended the response criteria to take into account tumor n

BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia is a significant indicator of the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. We investigated whether sarcopenia could identify subgroups with different risk of liver fibrosis and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) among subjects with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). METHODS: Subjects from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008-2011 were selected (n = 8361). Sarcopenia was defined using the sarcopenia ind

BACKGROUND & AIMS: A new hepatocellular carcinoma risk prediction model, PAGE-B, which includes age, gender and platelet count as constituent variables, has recently been proposed in Caucasian chronic hepatitis B patients. We validated PAGE-B model and compared its accuracy with that of conventional risk prediction models in Asian chronic hepatitis B patients. METHODS: Chronic hepatitis B patients treated with entecavir or tenofovir were consecutively recruited. The performance of PAGE-B and thr

BACKGROUND: Population-based data are lacking regarding whether fatty liver is a risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and mortality in patients with chronic viral hepatitis. AIM: To investigate the association of fatty liver with HCC incidence and mortality in patients with chronic viral hepatitis using a nationwide cohort METHODS: We included 57,385 patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) or chronic hepatitis C (CHC) who underwent health examinations. The patients were divided into th

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Liver stiffness (LS) measurement using transient elastography allows for accurate evaluation of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic liver disease. We aimed to investigate the influence of antiviral treatment using entecavir (ETV) on LS values in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). METHODS: 121 patients with CHB who completed a 3-year ETV treatment were recruited. LS values were measured before starting ETV (baseline) and after the completion of the 3-year treatment. A

Our data suggest that LS values are predictive of LRE development during 2-year ETV treatment in patients with CHB. The potential role of LS value as a monitoring tool for predicting dynamic changes in the risk of LRE development during long-term ETV treatment should be investigated further.

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in microRNA machinery genes might affect microRNA processing and subsequently impact tumorigenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between SNPs in microRNA machinery genes and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in a Korean population. Genotyping of six SNPs in microRNA machinery genes was performed using blood samples from 147 patients with HCC and 209 healthy control subjects. None of the six SNPs in microRNA machinery genes were sig

Liver stiffness (LS) assessed using transient elastography (TE) can assess the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We evaluated whether TE, when compared with histological data as a reference standard, can predict the risk of HCC development in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients starting antiviral therapy.Observational cohort database of 381 patients with CHB who underwent liver biopsy (LB) and TE were reviewed. All patients underwent surveillance for HCC development using ultraso

Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) can coexist with chronic viral hepatitis. MAFLD is a heterogeneous disease because the diagnostic criteria include various metabolic traits. We aimed to identify patients at high risk of poor long-term outcomes based on MAFLD subgroups in chronic viral hepatitis patients. We evaluated 63 273 chronic hepatitis B and C patients. Patient with a fatty liver index ≥30 was defined to have hepatic steatosis. MAFLD was defined as the presence

<b>Background/aims:</b> Cirrhosis is an important risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and the surveillance of patients with cirrhosis is, therefore, highly recommended. However, the role of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in HCC surveillance is controversial. The aim of this study was to determine the role of AFP in HCC surveillance among patients with cirrhosis.<b>Methods:</b> The study population consisted of 392 patients with cirrhosis. Ultrasound (US) and laboratory tests including AFP w