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Cancers
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Treatment Response Biomarkers in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: From Basic Science to...
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Treatment Response Biomarkers in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: From Basic Science to Clinical Validation

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 1221

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Paul T. Thevenot

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Ochsner Health System, New Orleans, LA, USA
Interests: hepatocellular carcinoma; prognostic biomarkers; liver-directed therapy; immune checkpoint inhibitors; combination therapy

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Despite recent developments in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance and treatment options, early diagnosis rates remain stable as incidence rates and cancer-related mortality continue to rise. At diagnosis, more than 80% of HCC is unresectable, with 40% being in the advanced stage. While advancements in liver-directed therapy (LDT), immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) regimens, and combination therapies continue to incrementally improve overall patient outcomes, the need to identify treatment responders and optimal treatment pathways has never been more apparent.

Research in HCC biomarkers for treatment response prognosis in both liver-directed and systemic therapy has been plagued by poor clinical translation. This has been partially driven by an overreliance on transcriptional databases (e.g., The Cancer Genome Atlas and Gene Expression Omnibus) as clinical validation for treatment outcomes and pathways to noninvasive biomarker assessment. There is a pressing need for treatment response biomarker discovery in prospective/observational, biospecimen-based cohorts with highly defined patient populations and treatment algorithms. This Special Issue will focus on prognostic biomarkers for treatment responders to LDT, ICI, and combination LDT-ICI therapies, which utilize basic science/translational research approaches with an emphasis on investigator-initiated, prospective, biospecimen-based validation studies. 

Dr. Paul T. Thevenot
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • hepatocellular carcinoma
  • prognostic biomarkers
  • liver-directed therapy
  • immune checkpoint inhibitors
  • combination therapy

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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24 pages, 850 KiB  
Review
Platelets in Hepatocellular Carcinoma—From Pathogenesis to Targeted Therapy
by Natalia Kluz, Hanna Grabowska, Paulina Chmiel, Kornelia Rynkiewicz, Alicja Skrobucha, Ewa Wysokińska, Łukasz Szymański, Piotr Tomasz Wysocki, Aleksandra Semeniuk-Wojtaś and Leszek Kraj
Cancers 2025, 17(14), 2391; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17142391 - 18 Jul 2025
Viewed by 181
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignancy with a complex pathogenesis, course, and prognosis with increasing incidence. The most significant contributing factor to the development of HCC is the chronic process of inflammation and remodeling of the cirrhotic liver, in which the interaction between [...] Read more.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignancy with a complex pathogenesis, course, and prognosis with increasing incidence. The most significant contributing factor to the development of HCC is the chronic process of inflammation and remodeling of the cirrhotic liver, in which the interaction between the tumor microenvironment (TME) and cancer cells plays a pivotal role. In recent years, increasing focus has been directed toward the role of platelets (PLTs) in mediating interactions between tumor cells and the TME and in the progression and spread of HCC, as well as other cancers. Due to their abundance in the bloodstream and intracellular granules rich in mediators facilitating their ability to modulate the immune system, PLTs play a significant role in carcinogenesis. In the context of HCC, the role of PLTs in the healing and regeneration processes of the liver has been recognized for some time. In recent years, there has been an increasing utilization of PLTs in prognostic models for patients with HCC. Given their role and the availability of clinical options that block PLTs’ action, clinical trials of platelet blockers in the adjunctive treatment of HCC are becoming increasingly common. However, further research, both preclinical and clinical, is necessary to fully elucidate the role of PLTs in HCC and their potential use as a therapeutic target. In this literature review, we summarize the current knowledge on PLTs in HCC and focus on their potential use in everyday clinical practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Treatment Response Biomarkers in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: From Basic Science to Clinical Validation)
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9 pages, 251 KiB  
Commentary
Surgery or Percutaneous Ablation for Liver Tumors? The Key Points Are: When, Where, and How Large
by Paola Tombesi, Andrea Cutini, Francesca Di Vece, Valentina Grasso, Ugo Politti, Eleonora Capatti and Sergio Sartori
Cancers 2025, 17(8), 1344; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17081344 - 16 Apr 2025
Viewed by 694
Abstract
The most recent comparisons between liver resection (LR) and percutaneous thermal ablation (PTA) reported similar efficacy and survival outcomes for primary and secondary liver tumors ≤ 3 cm in size. Nevertheless, LR still remains the most popular treatment strategy worldwide, and percutaneous ablation [...] Read more.
The most recent comparisons between liver resection (LR) and percutaneous thermal ablation (PTA) reported similar efficacy and survival outcomes for primary and secondary liver tumors ≤ 3 cm in size. Nevertheless, LR still remains the most popular treatment strategy worldwide, and percutaneous ablation is usually reserved to patients who are not surgical candidates. However, in our opinion, the debate should no longer be what is the most effective treatment for patients with resectable small liver cancer who are not candidates for liver transplantation, but rather when LR or PTA are best suited to the individual patient. Subcapsular tumors or tumors closely adjacent to critical structures or vulnerable organs should undergo LR because ablation can often not achieve an adequate safety margin. Conversely, PTA should be considered the first choice to treat central tumors because it has lower complication rates, lower costs, and shorter hospital stay. Furthermore, recent technical improvements in tumor targeting and accurate assessment of the extent of the safety margin, such as stereotactic navigation, fusion imaging and software powered by Artificial Intelligence enabling the immediate comparison between the pre-procedure planned margins and the ablation area, are also changing the approach to tumors larger than 3 cm. The next trials should be aimed at investigating up to what tumor size PTA supported by these advanced technologies can achieve outcomes comparable to LR. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Treatment Response Biomarkers in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: From Basic Science to Clinical Validation)
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