# Hepatocellular carcinoma

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-llovet-nat-rev-dis-primers/  
OnCo record `paper-llovet-nat-rev-dis-primers` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Paper cited by one pathway page, indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 33479224 and published in Nature reviews. Disease primers; the citing page links this DOI, which is how the record was matched.

## Summary

Liver cancer remains a global health challenge, with an estimated incidence of >1 million cases by 2025. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common form of liver cancer and accounts for ~90% of cases. Infection by hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus are the main risk factors for HCC development, although non-alcoholic steatohepatitis associated with metabolic syndrome or diabetes mellitus is becoming a more frequent risk factor in the West. Moreover, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis-associated HCC has a unique molecular pathogenesis. Approximately 25% of all HCCs present with potentially actionable mutations, which are yet to be translated into the clinical practice. Diagnosis based upon non-invasive criteria is currently challenged by the need for molecular information that requires tissue or liquid biopsies. The current major advancements have impacted the management of patients with advanced HCC. Six systemic therapies have been approved based on phase III trials (atezolizumab plus bevacizumab, sorafenib, lenvatinib, regorafenib, cabozantinib and ramucirumab) and three additional therapies have obtained accelerated FDA approval owing to evidence of efficacy. New trials are exploring combination therapies, including checkpoint inhibitors and tyrosine kinase inhibitors or anti-VEGF therapies, or even combinations of two immunotherapy regimens. The outcomes of these trials are expected to change the landscape of HCC management at all evolutionary stages.

Indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 33479224 (DOI 10.1038/s41572-020-00240-3). Matched by DOI alone: one pathway page cites this DOI among its external links (the pages are listed under Related), and this page was written so that the citation resolves inside OnCo. No figure has been checked by an editor.

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-22
- Tags: europepmc-ingest
- Journal: Nature reviews. Disease primers
- Year: 2021
- DOI: 10.1038/s41572-020-00240-3
- Authors: Llovet JM, Kelley RK, Villanueva A, et al.
- What it means: One pathway page on OnCo cites this paper by its DOI; this record gives the citation a page of its own so a reader can follow it without leaving OnCo. Read the abstract above alongside the citing page listed under Related; the record was created automatically from the Europe PMC entry and its figures have not been checked by hand.
- Caveats: Matched to the citing OnCo records by DOI alone; the summary reproduces the Europe PMC abstract and no figure has been verified against the full paper.

## Sources

- Nat Rev Dis Primers 2021: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41572-020-00240-3
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33479224/
- Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/33479224

## Connected records

- pathways: [Hepatocellular carcinoma (KEGG map)](https://onco.cc/pathways/hepatocellular-carcinoma-signalling/)

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