ABSTRACT
Objective: To investigate the relationship of alpha fetoprotein (AFP) with activation of hepatic progenitor cells in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the prognosis of HCC patients. Methods: The clinical data of 92 HCC patients who received curative hepatectomy were retrospectively analyzed. The patients included 76 males and 16 females, with a median age of 51 (ranging 25-72) years. Expression of AFP and CK19 protein was immunohistochemically stained and quantified. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to observe the influence of AFP expression on postoperative survival of patients. Cochran-armitage trend test was used to analyse the association of AFP expression with activation of progenitor cells (CK19 staining). Results: Patientswith high AFP expression had a significantly shorter survival than thosewith low AFP expression (P=0. 021). The activation score of hepatic progenitor cells was positively correlated with serum AFP concentration (P = 046) and AFP expression in tumor tissues (P<0. 001). Conclusion: AFP expression in HCC tissue predicts a poor prognosis. AFP is closely associated with activation of hepatic progenitor cells.