ABSTRACT
【Objective】 To evaluate the performance of SPINK1/SPP1 in diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) alone or in combination. 【Methods】 A total of 419 serum samples were collected and divided into four groups: normal control (n=93), chronic hepatitis B (CHB) (n=72), HBC related liver cirrhosis (LC) (n=77), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (n=177). Serum concentrations of SPINK1 and SPP1 were determined by ELISA kits. All parameters were first analyzed by significance tests among the groups. To distinguish tumors from non-tumors, a combination model was generated by multivariable binary Logistic regression using a comprehensive control group which consisted of the normal, the CHB and the LC groups. The performance of each indicator was judged by comparison of AUC, sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. 【Results】 The serum levels of SPINK1 and SPP1 were both significantly higher in HCC group than in all the others (P0.05), was lower than that of the combination model (P=0.042 9 and P0.05). 【Conclusion】 The data identified SPINK1 and SPP1 as novel tumor biomarkers with greater robust efficiency than the currently used AFP for detection of hepatocellular carcinoma, alone or in combination.