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Liver cancer: a study carried out in Modena shows how to diagnose the fast growing tumours at an early stage

A study designed and coordinated by the Gastroenterology Department of the Modena University Hospital, directed by professor Erica Villa, shows how the fast growing liver tumours can be diagnosed at an early stage. A few days ago in Rome, the Study “ Genes related to neoangiogenesis identify fast growing hepatocellular carcinoma with the least chance of survival. Results of a prospective study ” was awarded by AISF (Italian Liver Study Association) the best basic Italian study published in 2016 on international magazines. The Study was published on the Gut magazine.

Professor Erica Villa, Director of Gastroenterology at Modena Hospital, explained that “This study has been fully financed by Regione Emilia-Romagna within the scope of research programmes shared between the region and the university. It represents a unique study of its kind, as it has prospectively recruited a cohort of Patients at the first outbreak of the tumour disease. This allowed us to get extremely accurate information both on the clinical outcome and the characteristics of the disease at its outbreak and throughout its development, information that has later been connected with molecular study. By performing a simple biopsy of the tumour lesion associated with molecular analysis (in our Operating Unit this is already a routine operation) we can find the best therapeutic strategy for each single Patient”.

The study has shown that liver cancer is characterised by extremely different growth rates (the time it takes for the volume of the tumour lesion to double ranges from 30 to 600 days).” Professor Villa concludes that “This heterogeneity is strictly linked to the subsequent clinic development, with the fastest growing tumours featuring extremely quick developments. This is why it is important to identify the type of tumour. Our study has shown that these tumours may be identified as early as at first diagnosis by combining 5 genes that have been studied on liver biopsy”.

The study was designed and developed by the Gastroenterology department of the University Hospital of Modena, which has coordinated various centres in Italy (University of Padua, Bari, Palermo, and Messina), and abroad (CICbioGUNE, Bilbao, Spain). Therefore, the outcome is the result of the collaboration of some of the most important experts in various fields who have improved the research by providing their peculiar expertise on liver diseases and carcinogenesis. In Modena, the broad cooperation with other corporate structures of the University hospital of the Polyclinic, such as Radiology, Transplant Surgery and Anatomical Pathology, among others, was of utmost importance.

 

Categorie: International - english

Articolo pubblicato da: Ufficio Stampa Unimore - ufficiostampa@unimore.it il 07/03/2018