About the Program
Prevention of HCC Related to Metabolic Syndrome was awarded to our researchers by the National Cancer Institute in 2022 with the goal of reducing the burden of liver cancer in patients with metabolic dysfunction.
Hepatocelluar carcinoma (HCC) is the fastest growing cause of cancer deaths among Americans. In the past decade, there has been an epidemic increase in metabolic (dysfunction) associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD)-related cirrhosis and HCC. MAFLD is estimated to affect 1 billion individuals globally and is projected to become the leading cause of HCC in the next 2 decades.
There is an urgent need to develop effective strategies to reduce HCC burden in the growing MAFLD population. The overall goal of this project is to reduce the burden of HCC-related mortality through better understanding of contemporary risk factors (e.g., metabolic traits and biomarkers) and protective factors (e.g., chemoprevention, HCC surveillance) of HCC related to MAFLD. We propose three highly integrated studies. Central to this project is leveraging and expanding our multicity, prospective cohort of persons with MAFLD-related cirrhosis, the Texas HCCC Consortium (THCCC) Cohort, which will serve as a resource for the proposed studies.
Serum biomarker signature is predictive of the risk of hepatocellular cancer in patients with cirrhosis
Feb. 16, 2024: We identified a nine-biomarker panel (P9) with a C-index of 0.67 (95% CI 0.66 to 0.67), including insulin growth factor-1, interleukin-10, transforming growth factor β1, adipsin, fetuin-A, interleukin-1 β, macrophage stimulating protein α chain, serum amyloid A and TNF-α. Adding P9 to our clinical model with 10 factors including AFP improved AUROC at 1 and 2 years by 4.8% and 2.7%, respectively. Adding P9 to aMAP score improved AUROC at 1 and 2 years by 14.2% and 7.6%, respectively. Adding AFP L-3 or DCP did not change the predictive ability of the P9 model.
Baylor receives NCI grant to study liver cancer risk and prevention
Aug. 4, 2022: Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine received a five-year, $5.5 million-plus grant from the National Cancer Institute for research on liver cancer risk factors and prevention, with the goal of reducing the burden of liver cancer in patients with metabolic dysfunction.
