Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2020 Jun 3;39(1):101. Epub 2020 Jun 3.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, PLA General Hospital, No.28 Fuxing Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100853, China.

Background: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is a common liver malignancy in children. Our previous study has disclosed the crucial role of STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3) in HB.

Aim Of The Study: Present study was designed to study the circular RNA (circRNA) STAT3 in HB. Read More

Adv Mater 2020 Jun 2:e2001429. Epub 2020 Jun 2.

Laboratoire d'Etude des Microstructures, ONERA-CNRS, UMR104, Université Paris-Saclay, BP 72, Châtillon, 92322, France.

Fluorescence is ubiquitous in life science and used in many fields of research ranging from ecology to medicine. Among the most common fluorogenic compounds, dyes are being exploited in bioimaging for their outstanding optical properties from UV down to the near IR (NIR). However, dye molecules are often toxic to living organisms and photodegradable, which limits the time window for in vivo experiments. Read More

J Clin Pathol 2020 May 29. Epub 2020 May 29.

Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA

Aims: In situ hybridisation (ISH) for albumin mRNA is a sensitive marker of primary liver tumours in adults. However, paediatric tumours, such as hepatoblastoma (HB) and fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma (FLC), have not been tested thoroughly and may require ancillary tests to diagnose with confidence. We aim to determine if albumin ISH is useful in the pathological evaluation of these malignancies and to compare it to commonly used immunohistochemical markers HepPar 1 (HEPA) and arginase-1 (ARG). Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2020 May 27;21(11). Epub 2020 May 27.

Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Moscow 119121, Russia.

One of the major goals of the Chromosome-Centric Human Proteome Project (C-HPP) is to catalog and annotate a myriad of heterogeneous proteoforms, produced by ca. 20 thousand genes. To achieve a detailed and personalized understanding into proteomes, we suggest using a customized RNA-seq library of potential proteoforms, which includes aberrant variants specific to certain biological samples. Read More

J Pediatr 2020 May 26. Epub 2020 May 26.

Department of Pharmaceutical & Health Economics, School of Pharmacy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA; Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA.

Objectives: To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of screening children born at extremely low birth weight (ELBW) for hepatoblastoma using serial serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) measurements.

Study Design: We created a decision tree to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of screening children born at ELBW between 3 months and 48 months of age compared with current standard of care (no screening). Our model used discounted lifetime costs and monetary benefits in 2018 U. Read More

Cancer 2020 May 29. Epub 2020 May 29.

Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.

Background: Birth defects are established risk factors for childhood cancer. Nonetheless, cancer epidemiology in children with birth defects is not well characterized.

Methods: Using data from population-based registries in 4 US states, this study compared children with cancer but no birth defects (n = 13,111) with children with cancer and 1 or more nonsyndromic birth defects (n = 1616). Read More

Liver Transpl 2020 May 28. Epub 2020 May 28.

Department of Surgery, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.

Liver transplantation (LT) may have been viewed as the "last resort" for the treatment of congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunt (CEPS) due to advancement of imaging and interventional radiology techniques. However, some patients still require LT, and criteria for LT are yet to be determined. We conducted a national survey of cases undergoing LT for CEPS between June 1998 and August 2018 and evaluated the clinical data and outcomes with a review of previously reported cases from the English-language medical literature. Read More

J Clin Oncol 2020 May 28:JCO1903166. Epub 2020 May 28.

ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Purpose: Hearing loss is a significant late effect among childhood cancer survivors. Recent guidelines note insufficient evidence to quantify its natural history or risk associated with specific exposures. We examined the long-term incidence and predictors of hearing loss requiring hearing amplification devices (HADs) using population-based health care data. Read More

Tumori 2020 May 28:300891620925532. Epub 2020 May 28.

Pediatric Oncology Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy.

Peripheral precocious puberty (PPP) may be a paraneoplastic manifestation, associated with beta human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG)-secreting tumors. We describe 2 young children with β-hCG-secreting tumors presenting with signs of pubertal activation. In the first patient, a 16-month-old boy with hepatoblastoma, only initial signs of PPP at presentation were identifiable, with concomitant high levels of β-hCG. Read More

J Pediatr Hematol Oncol 2020 May 26. Epub 2020 May 26.

Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Division of Interventional Radiology.

Background: Prior reports have shown the utility of conventional lipiodol-based transarterial chemoembolization in hepatoblastoma. The authors describe the first reported case of hepatoblastoma treated with drug-eluting bead transarterial chemoembolization (DEB-TACE).

Observations: An 11-month-old infant presented with hepatoblastoma measuring 14. Read More

Pediatr Transplant 2020 May 27:e13746. Epub 2020 May 27.

Division of Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Saint Justine Hospital, Montreal, QC, Canada.

Most children with hepatoblastoma manifest, at the time of LT, a decrease in renal function due to chemotherapy that could be further deteriorated by the use of calcineurin inhibitors. The purpose of this work was to examine the long-term follow-up of renal function in a cohort of children transplanted for unresectable hepatoblastoma. We present a retrospective observational study of 10 pediatric patients who received a LT for unresectable hepatoblastoma between 1996 and 2016. Read More

J Gastrointest Cancer 2020 May 27. Epub 2020 May 27.

Department of Surgery, Division of Abdominal Transplant Surgery, Washington University in St Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.

Introduction: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is a rare childhood malignancy with hepatic resection (HR) or liver transplantation (LT) providing the best chance of cure. In this study, we analyze the National Cancer Database lacks (NCDB) to compare outcomes following HR and LT for HB.

Methods: Review of the US experience with surgical (HR and LT) management of pediatric (< 18 years) HB over the last decade (2004-2014) using data extracted from the NCDB. Read More

Chem Biodivers 2020 May 26. Epub 2020 May 26.

College of Plant Science, Jilin University, Changchun, 130062, P. R. China.

Biotransformation of ent-kaur-16-en-19-oic acid using fungus Cunninghamella echinulata resulted in two novel hydroxylated metabolites together with five known compounds. Their structures were elucidated by means of extensive NMR and HR-ESI-MS data analysis. The eight compounds were measured for their cytotoxicity against the human breast carcinoma (MCF-7) and human hepatoblastoma (HepG-2) cell lines. Read More

Hepatology 2020 May 26. Epub 2020 May 26.

RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, United States.

Background & Aims: Despite surgical and chemotherapeutic advances, the five-year survival rate for Stage IV Hepatoblastoma (HB), the predominant pediatric liver tumor, remains at 27%. YAP1 and β-Catenin co-activation occurs in 80% of children's HB; however, a lack of conditional genetic models precludes tumor maintenance exploration. Thus, the need for a targeted therapy remains unmet. Read More

Br J Cancer 2020 May 26. Epub 2020 May 26.

Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, Hannover, 30625, Germany.

Background: Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS) is a cancer predisposition syndrome caused by defects on chromosome 11p15.5. The quantitative cancer risks in BWS patients depend on the underlying (epi)genotype but have not yet been assessed in a population-based manner. Read More

Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2020 May 22:105773. Epub 2020 May 22.

Department of Surgery, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China. Electronic address:

NTCP (SLC10A1) has been well recognized as a basolateral (sinusoidal) Na+-bile acid co-transporter that mediates the hepatic uptake of bile acids. However, little is known about the effects of NTCP (SLC10A1) on hepatoblastoma (HB) and its underlying metabolic mechanisms. In this study, we found that NTCP (SLC10A1) expression was downregulated in HB cells and tissues, and it was demonstrated that NTCP (SLC10A1) reduced cell viability, promoted cell cycle arrest and induced apoptosis of HB cells. Read More

J Pediatr Rehabil Med 2020 May 15. Epub 2020 May 15.

Department of Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Chicago, IL, USA.

Purpose: Hepatoblastoma is the most common primary liver tumor in children and has a greater incidence in children with a history of prematurity and very low birth weight. To increase awareness of the association between prematurity and hepatoblastoma for health care providers who treat children with Cerebral Palsy (CP), we present two case reports.

Methods: Two case reports of premature, very low birth weight infants with hepatoblastoma are described and a literature review of hepatoblastoma in the setting of prematurity and cerebral palsy is performed. Read More

Onco Targets Ther 2020 8;13:3953-3963. Epub 2020 May 8.

Department of Pathology, Molecular Medicine and Cancer Research Center, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, People's Republic of China.

Purpose: Aurora kinase A (AURKA), which belongs to the serine/threonine protein kinase family, has been identified as a key driver of the genesis and progression of diverse tumors. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical significance of AURKA in patients with hepatoblastoma (HB) and the effect of inhibiting AURKA in the HB cell line HuH-6.

Methods: The expression of AURKA in HB tissue and adjacent normal liver tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry. Read More

Pediatr Surg Int 2020 May 20. Epub 2020 May 20.

Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatric Surgery, Ege University, 35100, Izmir, Turkey.

Purpose: Wnt/Beta-catenin pathway plays an essential role in liver development and regeneration. Abnormal activation in this pathway leads to development of hepatoblastoma (HB). Although its importance has invoked attention, its prognostic role is debatable. Read More

Microb Drug Resist 2020 May 20. Epub 2020 May 20.

Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Collegium Medicum, Nicolaus Copernicus University Torun, Bydgoszcz, Poland.

Infectious complications (IC) caused by bacterial strains often impede anticancer therapy. The study aimed to retrospectively analyze bacterial IC that could help predict the risk and optimize the empirical treatment for bacterial infections in pediatric cancer patients. Over a 72-month period, all-in 5,599 children with cancer: 2,441 patients with hematological malignancy (HM including acute leukemias, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphomas [NHLs], and Langerhans cell histiocytosis) and 3,158 with solid tumors (STs including central nervous system tumors, neuroblastoma, Wilms' tumor, soft tissue sarcoma, germ cell tumors, Ewing sarcoma, osteosarcoma, hepatoblastoma, and others) were enrolled into the study. Read More

Front Oncol 2020 5;10:556. Epub 2020 May 5.

Department of Genetics and Evolutionary Biology, Human Genome and Stem-Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.

Hepatoblastoma is a very rare embryonal liver cancer supposed to arise from the impairment of hepatocyte differentiation during embryogenesis. In this study, we investigated by exome sequencing the burden of somatic mutations in a cohort of 10 hepatoblastomas, including a congenital case. Our data disclosed a low mutational background and pointed out to a novel set of candidate genes for hepatoblastoma biology, which were shown to impact gene expression levels. Read More

Pediatr Dev Pathol 2020 May 19:1093526620915987. Epub 2020 May 19.

Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Teratoid hepatoblastoma (HB) is a variant of mixed HB described as having a mixture of heterologous components. A 3-year-old boy presented for a liver transplant evaluation due to persistent HB. His liver was biopsied as well as a perirenal mass. Read More

Ear Nose Throat J 2020 May 19:145561320924868. Epub 2020 May 19.

Department of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.

Introduction: Vincristine (VCR) is a chemotherapeutic agent used widely in the treatment of hematologic and solid tumors, known to result in neurotoxicity, especially with cumulative administrations. Bilateral vocal fold palsy (VFP) is a rare but life-threatening complication of VCR. We report 2 patients with hepatoblastoma presenting with stridor following VCR treatment and propose a management plan. Read More

Eur J Pediatr Surg 2020 May 18. Epub 2020 May 18.

Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai, India.

Introduction:  Treatment guidelines for hepatoblastoma discourage nonanatomic liver resections. However, the evidence for this is inadequate and comes from a study performed almost two decades ago which additionally contained inherent limitations. This study aimed to assess the feasibility and oncologic outcomes of nonanatomic resections (NAR) performed in diligently selected patients and compare the results with anatomic resections (AR). Read More

J Clin Oncol 2020 May 18:JCO1901067. Epub 2020 May 18.

Center for Integrated Medical Research, Hiroshima University Hospital, Hiroshima, Japan.

Purpose: We report here the outcomes and late effects of the Japanese Study Group for Pediatric Liver Tumors (JPLT)-2 protocol, on the basis of cisplatin-tetrahydropyranyl-adriamycin (CITA) with risk stratification according to the pretreatment extent of disease (PRETEXT) classification for hepatoblastoma (HB).

Patients And Methods: From 1999 to 2012, 361 patients with untreated HB were enrolled. PRETEXT I/II patients were treated with up-front resection, followed by low-dose CITA (stratum 1) or received low-dose CITA, followed by surgery and postoperative chemotherapy (stratum 2). Read More

Transl Oncol 2020 May 13;13(8):100785. Epub 2020 May 13.

Institute for Experimental Cancer Research in Pediatrics, Goethe-University, 60528, Frankfurt, Germany; Laboratory of Experimental Surgery, Department of General and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Giessen, Giessen Germany; Department of General and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Giessen, Giessen University, Giessen, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Partner Site Frankfurt, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany. Electronic address:

Ferroptosis, a newly discovered form of cell death mediated by reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lipid peroxidation, has recently been shown to have an impact on various cancer types; however, so far there are only few studies about its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The delicate equilibrium of ROS in cancer cells has found to be crucial for cell survival, thus increased levels may trigger ferroptosis in HCC. In our study, we investigated the effect of different ROS modulators and ferroptosis inducers on a human HCC cell line and a human hepatoblastoma cell line. Read More

Oxid Med Cell Longev 2020 20;2020:3237150. Epub 2020 Jan 20.

School of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Binzhou Medical University, Yantai, 264003 Shandong, China.

The botanical constituents of Linn. exhibit various pharmacological and medicinal activities. Neochamaejasmin A (NCA), one main active constituent of , inhibits cell proliferation and induces cell apoptosis in several types of tumor cells. Read More

J Gastrointest Oncol 2020 Apr;11(2):431-442

Department of General Surgery, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China.

Liver malignancies include primary and metastatic tumors. Limited progress has been achieved in improving the survival rate of patients with advanced stage liver cancer and who are unsuitable for surgery. Apart from surgery, chemoradiotherapy, trans-arterial chemoembolization and radiofrequency ablation, a novel therapeutic modality is needed for the clinical treatment of liver cancer. Read More

Medicina (Kaunas) 2020 May 7;56(5). Epub 2020 May 7.

Department of Pediatrics, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA.

The majority of pediatric patients are cured of their primary cancer with current advanced developments in pediatric cancer therapy. However, survivors often experience long-term complications from therapies for primary cancer. The delayed mortality rate has been decreasing with the effort to reduce the therapeutic exposure of patients with pediatric cancers. Read More

Cancer Biomark 2020 Apr 30. Epub 2020 Apr 30.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, Dr. von Hauner Children's Hospital, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.

Background: The role of microRNAs (miRs) as biomarkers to predict outcome in hepatoblastoma (HB), the most common malignant liver tumor in childhood, has still to be determined. Recently, the so-called four-miR signature has been described to efficiently stratify HB patients according to their prognosis.

Objective: We examined the recently described four-miR signature for its clinical relevance in an independent validation cohort of HB patients and tried to optimize its predictive value by analyzing four additional miRs involved in HB biology. Read More

J Ethnopharmacol 2020 May 7;259:112927. Epub 2020 May 7.

Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Korea University, Seoul, South Korea. Electronic address:

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Ginsenoside, a major pharmacologically active ingredient in ginseng, has been known to exhibit beneficial properties such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Ginsenoside compound Mc1 is one of the newly identified de-glycosylated ginsenosides. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has implicated in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) through apoptosis and lipid accumulation. Read More

BMC Pediatr 2020 May 9;20(1):200. Epub 2020 May 9.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, 9 Jinsui Road, Guangzhou, 510623, Guangdong, China.

Background: To report the outcomes of hepatoblastoma resected in our institution.

Methods: We diagnosed 135 children with hepatoblastoma at our institution between January 2010 and December 2017. Patients who underwent liver resection were included for analysis. Read More

Pediatr Blood Cancer 2020 May 8:e28350. Epub 2020 May 8.

Division of Pediatric Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Utah, Salt Lake City.

Purpose: Treatment outcomes for hepatoblastoma have improved markedly in the contemporary treatment era, principally due to therapy intensification, with overall survival increasing from 35% in the 1970s to 90% at present. Unfortunately, these advancements are accompanied by an increased incidence of toxicities. A detailed analysis of age as a prognostic factor may support individualized risk-based therapy stratification. Read More

BJS Open 2020 May 7. Epub 2020 May 7.

Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation, Sree Balaji Medical College Hospital, Bharat Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, India.

Background: Outcomes of high-risk hepatoblastoma have been dismal, especially in resource-challenged countries where access to chemotherapy and paediatric liver transplantation is limited for the underprivileged. This study aimed to assess the results of treatment of high-risk hepatoblastoma in a tertiary centre, including patients who had non-transplant surgical procedures in the form of extended resection.

Methods: A review of patients with high-risk hepatoblastoma treated between January 2012 and May 2018 was carried out. Read More

Abdom Radiol (NY) 2020 May 6. Epub 2020 May 6.

Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, 58 Zhong Shan Road 2, Guangzhou, 510080, China.

This essay aimed to illustrate the various hepatic nodules that may exhibit arterial phase hyperenhancement and washout on computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (CT/MRI). Hepatic nodules with arterial phase hyperenhancement and washout on CT/MRI include hepatocellular carcinoma, focal nodular hyperplasia-like nodules, serum amyloid A-positive hepatocellular neoplasms, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, intrahepatic bile duct adenoma, hepatoblastoma, hepatocellular adenoma, hepatic epithelioid angiomyolipoma, and metastasis including neuroendocrine and gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Understanding the imaging findings is important to ensure correct diagnosis. Read More

Cell Death Dis 2020 May 4;11(5):313. Epub 2020 May 4.

Department of General Surgery, Tangdu Hospital, Air Force Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi, China.

Primary liver cancer (PLC) may be mainly classified as the following four types: hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), hepatoblastoma (HB), and combined hepatocellular carcinoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (cHCC-ICC). The majority of PLC develops in the background of tumor microenvironment, such as inflammatory microenvironments caused by viral hepatitis, alcoholic or nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, carbon tetrachloride (CCl), 3,5-diethoxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydrocollidine (DDC), and necroptosis-associated hepatic cytokine microenvironment caused by necroptosis of hepatocytes. However, the impact of different types of microenvironments on the phenotypes of PLC generated by distinct oncogenes is still unclear. Read More

J Biochem Mol Toxicol 2020 May 3:e22516. Epub 2020 May 3.

Departamento de Toxicología, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del IPN, Ciudad de México, México.

The liver is the organ responsible for bisphenol A (BPA) metabolism, an environmental chemical agent. Exposure to this toxin is associated with liver abnormalities and dysfunction. An important role played by excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) of the slc1 gene family has been reported in liver injuries. Read More

Onco Targets Ther 2020 14;13:3105-3115. Epub 2020 Apr 14.

Department of Pediatrics, Liaocheng People's Hospital, Liaocheng 252000, Shandong Province, People's Republic of China.

Introduction: HB presents with the highest frequency of CTNNB1 mutations, resulting in activation of Wnt signaling pathway. A number of studies have demonstrated CTNNB1 mutation contributed to the development of HB. However, limited research explored the function of lncRNAs in HB with CTNNB1 mutation. Read More

Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol 2020 Apr 26. Epub 2020 Apr 26.

Cancer Research Centre, Cancer Council Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.

Background: Childhood liver cancers are relatively rare, hence inferences on incidence trends over time are limited by lack of precision in most studies.

Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of published contemporary trends on childhood liver cancer incidence rates worldwide.

Data Sources: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science. Read More

Biomed Pharmacother 2020 Jul 20;127:110154. Epub 2020 Apr 20.

The First Affiliated Hospital, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi, 154002, Heilongjiang, China. Electronic address:

LASP2 was recently demonstrated to serve as multifaceted roles in several types of cancers. However, its underlying mechanism in the progression of human liver cancer has not been explored. The aims of the current study were to detect LASP2 expression in a liver tissue microarray, and to determine whether LASP2 contributes to malignant phenotypes of HepG2 human hepatoblastoma cells. Read More

Cancer 2020 Jul 22;126(13):3114-3121. Epub 2020 Apr 22.

Division of Clinical Genetics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.

Background: Constitutional or somatic mosaic epimutations are increasingly recognized as a mechanism of gene dysregulation resulting in cancer susceptibility. Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome is the cancer predisposition syndrome most commonly associated with epimutation and is extremely variable in its phenotypic presentation, which can include isolated tumors. Because to the authors' knowledge large-scale germline DNA sequencing studies have not included methylation analysis, the percentage of pediatric cancer predisposition that is due to epimutations is unknown. Read More

PLoS One 2020 16;15(4):e0230690. Epub 2020 Apr 16.

Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali, Biologiche e Farmaceutiche, Università della Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Caserta, Italy.

In recent years, chronic degenerative diseases such as certain types of cancers, are becoming an evident issue. DNA damage has been for long recognized as a causal factor for cancer development because mutations or chromosomal aberrations affect oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes leading cells to malignant transformation and to the subsequent cancerous growth. Medicinal plants are often used for the prevention or treatment of various diseases with great scientific interest. Read More

Pediatr Neonatol 2020 Mar 24. Epub 2020 Mar 24.

Department of Pediatrics, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address:

Backgorund: Hepatoblastoma is the most common primary liver malignancy in young children.

Methods: To identify predictors of the clinical outcomes of hepatoblastoma, we retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 45 children with hepatoblastoma in the National Taiwan University Hospital from 1998 to 2018. All of the children were classified as high risk according to the pretreatment extent of disease (PRETEXT) staging system. Read More

J Cancer 2020 15;11(12):3512-3518. Epub 2020 Mar 15.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang 110004, Liaoning, China.

Hepatoblastoma is one of the malignant liver tumors in children. However, genetic mechanisms underpinning the initiation of hepatoblastoma remain largely unclear. The previous study showed that lin-28 homolog B (LIN28B) might play a role in the development of hepatoblastoma. Read More

Am J Pathol 2020 Apr 10. Epub 2020 Apr 10.

Institute of Pathology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.

Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common pediatric liver tumor. Though Wnt/β-catenin and Hippo cascades are implicated in HB development, studies on crosstalk between β-catenin and Hippo downstream effector transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ) in HB are lacking. Expression levels of TAZ and β-catenin in human HB specimens were assessed by IHC. Read More

Cell Rep 2020 Apr;31(1):107475

Department of Biochemistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada; Department of Oncology, The London Regional Cancer Program, London, ON, Canada; Lawson Health Research Institute, London Health Science Centre, London, ON, Canada. Electronic address:

Thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) is a nuclear receptor coactivator that plays an essential role in the maintenance of epigenetic stability in cells. Here, we demonstrate that the conditional deletion of TDG in adult mice results in a male-predominant onset of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). TDG loss leads to a prediabetic state, as well as bile acid (BA) accumulation in the liver and serum of male mice. Read More

Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2020 May 8;44(5):1046-1060. Epub 2020 Apr 8.

From the, Titus Family Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California.

Background: Excess alcohol (ethanol, EtOH) consumption is a significant cause of chronic liver disease, accounting for nearly half of the cirrhosis-associated deaths in the United States. EtOH-induced liver toxicity is linked to EtOH metabolism and its associated increase in proinflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress, and the subsequent activation of Kupffer cells. Dihydromyricetin (DHM), a bioflavonoid isolated from Hovenia dulcis, can reduce EtOH intoxication and potentially protect against chemical-induced liver injuries. Read More

Cytopathology 2020 Apr 3. Epub 2020 Apr 3.

Department of Cytology and Gynecological Pathology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.

Hepatoblastoma, is a rare primary hepatic malignancy, most commonly seen in infants and children less than 3 years of age. We present a rare case of mixed fetal-embryonal hepatoblastoma, diagnosed on fine needle aspiration cytology supplemented by immunocytochemistry on cell-block. Knowledge of the characteristic cytomorphologic and immunocytochemical features is important for rendering accurate pre-operative diagnosis for prompt management of these tumors. Read More

J Hepatol 2020 Mar 30. Epub 2020 Mar 30.

Childhood Liver Oncology Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Program for Predictive and Personalized Medicine of Cancer (PMPPC), Badalona, Spain; CIBER, Hepatic and Digestive Diseases, Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address:

Background And Aims: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is a rare disease. Nevertheless, it is the predominant pediatric liver cancer, with limited therapeutic options for patients with aggressive tumors. Here we sought to increase knowledge of HB pathobiology in an effort to move towards precision medicine. Read More

Transplantation 2020 Jun;104(6):1131-1135

Multi-Organ Transplant, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

Liver transplantation (LT) for unresectable colorectal liver metastases has long been abandoned because of dismal prognoses. After the dark ages, advances in chemotherapy and diagnostic imaging have enabled strict patient selection, and the pioneering study from the Oslo group has contributed to the substantial progress in this field. For unresectable neuroendocrine liver metastases, LT for patients who met the Milan criteria was able to achieve excellent long-term outcomes. Read More