Evaluation of Cytoskeleton-Linking Membrane Protein 63 as a Serum Marker for the Early Detection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract
Background: Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is the third most common cause of cancer death worldwide. The burden of HCC has been increasing in Egypt with a doubling in the incidence rate in the past ten years. Subsequently, novel serum markers are needed to improve the diagnostic accuracy of HCC especially with the low sensitivity of a-Fetoprotein (AFP).
Aim of Study: Evaluation of serum Cytoskeleton Linking Membrane Protein-63 (CLIMP-63) as a marker for diagnosis of HCC.
Patients and Methods: Eighty individuals were included and they were divided into three groups (30 HCC patients, 30 cirrhotic patients and 20 healthy individuals). Samples were collected and serum CLIMP-63 was determined with Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays (ELISA). The area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (AuROC), sensitivity and specificity of AFP and CLIMP-63 levels were evaluated for diagnostic performance.
Results: Serum CLIMP-63 levels in HCC patients were much higher than healthy individuals and cirrhotic patients (p-value=0.001). The AuROC, sensitivity and specificity of serum CLIMP-63 for the diagnosis of HCC were 0.782, 80% and 68%, respectively. The AuROC, sensitivity and specificity of AFP for the diagnosis of HCC were 0.712, 75% and 70%, respectively.
Conclusions: Serum CLIMP-63 may be a novel serum biomarker for diagnosis of HCC in the early stage and testing serum CLIMP-63 and AFP may improve the detection rate of HCC.