Contents

#### **Preface XI**

Chapter 1 **Role of Alleles and Genotypes of Polymorphisms of IL-18 (-607 C/A; and -137 C/G), IFN-γ (+874 A/T) and TNF-α (-238 A/G and -308 A/G) and HLA-G Genes in the Susceptibility of Hepatocellular Carcinoma 1** Andreza Correa Teixeira, Ana de Lourdes Candolo Martinelli and Eduardo Antonio Donadi


Chapter 8 **Surgical Treatment Strategies and Prognosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma 143**

Alessandro Uzzau, Maria Laura Pertoldeo, Vittorio Cherchi, Serena Bertozzi, Claudio Avellini and Giorgio Soardo

Preface

for this complex disease.

Liver cancer is the fifth most frequently diagnosed cancer in men worldwide, and is the sec‐ ond leading cause of cancer-related death. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most com‐ mon type of primary liver cancers, and has unique age, sex, and geographic distributions that are most likely determined by specific etiologic factors. HCC is potentially curable by surgical resection and liver transplantation. However, the majority of patients present with unresectable, advanced-stage disease, which is most commonly accompanied by severe background liver disease. Therefore, management of HCC is complicated by its highly vari‐ able biologic behavior and the frequent coexistence of underlying liver disease in affected patients. Hence, the care of patients with HCC has long been based upon a multidisciplinary approach, which involves experts from multiple specialties collaborating from the earliest stages of treatment planning to ensure personalizing the treatment for each individual pa‐ tient. Thus, our book will describe not just diagnosis and treatment of HCC, but also the entire range of existing and evolving interdisciplinary surgical, local and systemic therapies

Furthermore, the demonstration of improved patient outcome in clinical trials of targeted agents in this very challenging malignancy has generated renewed enthusiasm in the field which led to a wide expansion of clinical research efforts in all aspects of HCC management. However, clinical development of targeted therapy in HCC suffers from several handicaps including lack of effective ways of choosing patients who are likely to respond, and moni‐ toring biologic activity as measured by plasma and tissue biomarkers or imaging-based bio‐ markers to assess tumor response. Therefore, we have chosen to present some relevant

We are very grateful for the dedication and work of all authors in putting together this inter‐ disciplinary collection of the clinical and research knowledge on the management of HCC,

We believe that this description of HCC multidisciplinary care will be a valuable resource for physicians and researchers from multiple specialties and in different practice settings

Assistant Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal (GI) Medical Oncology,

Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas,

Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, USA

**Dr. Ahmed O. Kaseb**

literature reviews and research studies related to recent research advances in HCC.

and for their steadfast efforts in bringing this book to life.

and an example for other multidisciplinary endeavors.

Chapter 9 **Conditions that Predispose to the Development of HCC: The Role of Tumor Associated Fibroblasts and of microRNA 173** C. Avellini, D. Cesselli, A.P. Beltrami, M. Orsaria, S. Marzinotto, F. Morassi and S. Uzzau

