Hepatocellular Carcinoma Pathogenesis and Therapy

Dear Colleagues,

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer, ranked among the top six causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Over the past three decades, significant advancements have been made in unresectable advanced HCC treatment, starting with the FDA’s approval of sorafenib as the first-line therapy drug. Since then, several other targeted therapy drugs have been approved as second-line treatments, and immune checkpoint inhibitors have gained prominence in clinical applications. Despite these advancements, there remains a substantial gap between pathological diagnosis, molecular characterization, optimized therapy strategies, and treatment outcomes.

This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive platform for the latest research and advancements in the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of HCC. This issue’s scope encompasses a wide range of topics, including but not limited to the following:

1. Epidemiology and Risk Factors: Studies exploring the incidence, prevalence, and risk factors associated with HCC, including viral hepatitis, alcohol consumption, metabolic disorders, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
2. Early HCC Diagnosis: The importance of an early diagnosis in determining the treatment methods and improving the outcomes and survival rates of patients with HCC.
3. Molecular Pathology Characteristics of HCC: Understanding the molecular and genetic mechanisms of HCC development and progression, including novel biomarkers for early detection, monitoring, predicting, and providing guidelines for HCC treatment.
4. Innovative Diagnostic Techniques: Advances in imaging, biopsy techniques, and liquid biopsy for accurate and early HCC diagnosis, addressing its heterogeneity and treatment outcomes.
5. Precision Medicine, including Molecular Target Therapy for HCC: Strategies for comprehensive HCC therapy, such as targeted, immune-, and combination therapies, to improve patient management, quality of life, and long-term outcomes.
6. In vivo and in vitro models used for HCC study: Each model has its own advantages and limitations. To effectively address the questions involved in HCC development, it is crucial to combine various models, avoiding bias and ensuring more robust conclusions. By integrating different models, we can reduce the gap between preclinical and clinical studies, thereby enhancing the evaluation and acceleration of effective drug discovery.
7. Retrospective Studies: Investigating the correlation between diagnostic methods and treatment outcomes to refine the therapeutic approaches.

Dr. Junyan Tao
Guest Editor

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• HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma)
• early diagnosis
• molecular pathology characteristics
• molecular target therapy
• combination therapy
• immune checkpoint inhibitors
• precision medicine
• HCC heterogeneity
• drug resistance
• HCC risk factors