Fucosylation Index of α-Fetoprotein, a Possible Aid in the Early Recognition of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Patients with Cirrhosis

✍ Scribed by Yutaka Aoyagi; Atsushi Saitoh; Yasufumi Suzuki; Kentarou Igarashi; Makoto Oguro; Tsuyoshi Yokota; Shigeki Mori; Takeshi Suda; Hitoshi Asakura; Mamoru Isemura

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1993
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 319 KB
• Volume: 17
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0270-9139
• DOI: 10.1002/hep.1840170110

✦ Synopsis

We report here on three patients with cirrhosis for whom an early recognition of hepatocellular carcinoma was made possible by the measurement of the degree of fucosylation (fucosylation index) of a-fetoprotein. Increased levels of this index associated with a moderate increment of serum concentration of a-fetoprotein were observed in three patients with cirrhosis who showed no indication of hepatocellular carcinoma by several imaging modalities. Four years after the onset of an increase in the fucosylation index, small hepatocellular carcinoma with a tumor diameter less than 2 cm was revealed in case 1. In cases 2 and 3, small hepatocellular carcinomas were detected 24 mo and 9 mo, respectively, after the first sign of the increase in the index. However, the development to hepatocellular carcinoma was not detected in five patients with cirrhosis in whom continuous increments of serum concentration of a-fetoprotein with low levels of fucosylation index were observed during the prospective follow-up from 3 to 9 yr. These findings indicated that the fucosylation index of a-fetoprotein can be used as an aid in an early recognition of hepatocellular carcinoma, especially in patients with cirrhosis during the follow-up process in which the moderate increment of serum concentration of a-fetoprotein is noted. (HEPATOLOGY 1993;17:50-52.) Early detection of HCC is very important during the follow-up of patients with chronic liver diseases because the high incidence of HCC was observed in association with cirrhosis. The measurement of the serum concentration of a-fetoprotein (AFP) has been used extensively for the detection of HCC (1-3). However, the serum concentration of AFP also increases in benign liver diseases such as cirrhosis and fulminant hepatitis (4-6).