Iron Load and Serum Hepcidin in Hepatitis C Virus-Related
Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Nehad M Tawfik, Mona A Hegazy, Inas A Abdel Maksoud, Aml S Nasr
Citation Information :
M Tawfik N, A Hegazy M, A Abdel Maksoud I, S Nasr A. Iron Load and Serum Hepcidin in Hepatitis C Virus-Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Euroasian J Hepatogastroenterol 2012; 2 (1):24-27.
Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major cause
of death worldwide, and chronic inflammatory stress caused
by hepatitis viruses plays a major role in HCC carcinogenesis.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression
of serum hepcidin and its correlation with iron overload in HCC.
Study design: The study was carried out on 50 hepatitis C
virus (HCV)-related HCC cirrhotic patients (Group I) and 20
age-matched non-HCC liver cirrhosis patients as control
(Group II). Serum hepcidin was measured in all samples with a
commercial immunoassay. The extent of iron deposition was
evaluated in liver histochemically.
Results: There was no relationship between the serum hepcidin
level and the histological grade of HCC (p = 0.1492), or
multiplicity of focal lesion (p = 0.0719), however, hepatic iron
deposition was significant higher in HCC than non-HCC cirrhotic
patients (p < 0.005).
Conclusion: The current study suggests a positive association
of hepatic iron score, but the role of hepcidin in this context
remains to be elucidated.
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