Correlation of LI-RADS 3 or 4 Observations with Histopathologic Diagnosis in Patients with Cirrhosis

Serum levels of total bile acids are associated with an increased risk of HCC in patients with cirrhosis

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have reported higher circulating bile acid levels in patients with HCC compared to healthy controls. However, the association between prediagnostic bile acid levels and HCC risk among patients with cirrhosis is unclear.

METHODS

We measured total BA (TBA) concentration in serum samples collected from a prospective cohort of patients with cirrhosis who were followed until the development of HCC, death, or last study date. Competing risk proportional hazard-adjusted models were used to estimate the association between tertiles of serum TBA levels and the risk of developing HCC. We quantified the incremental predictive value of serum bile acid when added to a previously validated clinical model.

RESULTS

We analyzed data from 940 patients with cirrhosis, of whom 68 patients progressed to HCC during 3406 person-years of follow-up. Higher baseline serum TBA level was significantly associated with an increased risk of developing HCC with an adjusted HR of 3.69 (95% CI = 1.85-7.37) for the highest versus lowest tertile. TBA levels significantly increased predictive ability for progression to HCC at 2 years of follow-up; the c statistic increased from 0.74 to 0.80 (p < 0.001). There was evidence for a significant interaction between TBA level and hepatitis C (p = 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

In a large prospective cohort study, the prediagnostic serum level of TBAs was associated with a significant increase in the risk of developing HCC among patients with multi-etiology cirrhosis. The TBA-associated risk was additive to that of established demographic and clinical predictors.

Natural History of Indeterminate Liver Nodules in Patients With Advanced Liver Disease: A Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study

INTRODUCTION

Indeterminate liver nodules (ILNs) are frequently encountered on diagnostic imaging after positive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance results, but their natural history remains unclear.

METHODS

We conducted a multicenter retrospective cohort study among patients with ≥1 newly detected LI-RADS 3 (LR-3) lesion ≥1 cm or LI-RADS 4 (LR-4) lesion of any size (per LI-RADS v2018) between January 2018 and December 2019. Patients were followed with repeat imaging at each site per institutional standard of care. Multivariable Fine-Gray models were used to evaluate associations between potential risk factors and patient-level time-to-HCC diagnosis, with death and liver transplantation as competing risks.

RESULTS

Of 307 patients with ILNs, 208 had LR-3 lesions, 83 had LR-4 lesions, and 16 had both LR-3 and LR-4 lesions. HCC incidence rates for patients with LR-3 and LR-4 lesions were 110 (95% CI 70-150) and 420 (95% CI 310-560) per 1,000 person-year, respectively. In multivariable analysis, incident HCC among patients with LR-3 lesions was associated with older age, thrombocytopenia (platelet count ≤150 ×10 9 /L), and elevated serum alpha-fetoprotein levels. Among those with LR-4 lesions, incident HCC was associated with a maximum lesion diameter >1 cm. Although most patients had follow-up computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging, 13.7% had no follow-up imaging and another 14.3% had follow-up ultrasound only.

DISCUSSION

ILNs have a high but variable risk of HCC, with 4-fold higher risk in patients with LR-4 lesions than those with LR-3 lesions, highlighting a need for accurate risk stratification tools and close follow-up in this population.

The delta in management of HDV/HBV coinfection: Lessons from a case

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Clinical outcomes of patients with Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System 3 or Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System 4 observations in patients with cirrhosis: A systematic review

Patients with indeterminate liver nodules, classified as LR-3 and LR-4 observations per the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System, are at risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but risk estimates remain imprecise. We conducted a systematic review of Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases from inception to December 2021 to identify cohort studies examining HCC incidence among patients with LR-3 or LR-4 observations on computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Predictors of HCC were abstracted from each study, when available. Of 13 total studies, nine conducted LR-3 observation-level analyses, with the proportions of incident HCC ranging from 1.2% to 12.5% at 12 months and 4.2% to 44.4% during longer study follow-up. Among three studies with patient-level analyses, 8%-22.2% of patients with LR-3 lesions developed LR-4 observations and 11.1%-24.5% developed HCC. Among nine studies conducting LR-4 observation-level analyses, incident HCC ranged from 30.8% to 44.0% at 12 months and 30.9% to 71.0% during study follow-up; conversely, 6%-42% of observations were downgraded to LR-3 or lower. Patient-level factors associated with HCC included older age, male sex, higher alpha-fetoprotein levels, viral etiology, and prior history of HCC; observation-level factors included maximum diameter, threshold growth, T2 hyperintensity, and visibility on ultrasound. Studies were limited by small sample sizes, inclusion of patients with prior HCC, short follow-up duration, and failure to account for clustering of observations in patients or competing risks of transplantation and death. LR-3 and LR-4 observations have elevated but variable risks of HCC. Higher quality studies are necessary to identify high-risk patients who warrant close CT or MRI-based follow-up.