Elevation of endoglin (CD105) concentrations in serum of patients with liver cirrhosis and carcinoma

OBJECTIVELiver cirrhosis is considered as a premalignant state, as about 80% of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is associated with liver cirrhosis. Although alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) has a high negative predictive value, its sensitivity for detecting HCC is poor. The aim of this study was to evaluate circulating endoglin (CD105) in the serum of patients with liver cirrhosis and at high risk for HCC. METHODSCD105 and AFP serum concentrations were measured in 70 healthy and 94 nonliver-diseased controls and 130 patients with chronic liver diseases and HCC, respectively. RESULTSFifty-seven liver cirrhotic patients, 45 patients with liver cirrhosis plus HCC, 19 liver fibrosis patients and nine patients with HCC only were studied. Serum CD105 is significantly elevated in liver cirrhotic patients compared with healthy (P