Title:Dickkopf-1 and β-catenin as Biomarkers for Early Diagnosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Volume: 16
Issue: 2
Author(s): Amal A. Mohamed, Hala M. Ghanem, Maha M. Kamal, Rehab Ahmed, Naglaa K. Madkour, Dina Abdou, Soha M. Talima, Nehad Hawash and Sherief Abd-Elsalam*
Affiliation:
- Tropical Medicine Department, Tanta University Hospital, Gharbia,Egypt
Keywords:
Dickkopf-1, hepatocellular carcinoma, β-catenin, specificity, sensitivity, liver cirrhosis.
Abstract:
Background & Aims: The clinical value of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) as a marker to
detect early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been questioned owing to its low sensitivity and
specificity. The purpose of this work was to investigate whether serum Wnt/β-catenin and DKK1
levels in chronic hepatitis C patients could be used as early predictors for the risk of HCC
development.
Methods: The study was conducted on 37 healthy controls, and 150 CHC patients were divided
into three groups: CHC, liver cirrhosis (LC), and HCC patients. AFP, AFP-L3, β-catenin, and
DKK-1 were assayed by ELISA.
Results: Both β-catenin and DKK1 levels significantly increased (p < 0.001) in the HCC group in
comparison to LC and CHC groups. The first cut-off value for DKK-1 was 253 pg/ml with 88%
sensitivity and 86% specificity. The second was 301.5 pg/ml with 82 percent sensitivity and
100% specificity. The β-catenin cut-off value was 7.35 ng/ml with 80% sensitivity and 74%
specificity. A positive correlation was observed between DKK-1 and β-catenin (r=0.491), DKK-1
and tumor size (r =0.616), and β-catenin and tumor size (r =0.472).
Conclusion: DKK-1 and β-catenin may serve as predictors for the progression of CHC and LC
into HCC.
