Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is considered one of the most common cancers globally. Reprogramming of lipid metabolism including increased cholesterol has been linked to the progression of various cancer types. Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate expression of STARD3, APOC1, SREBP2 in HCV- associated HCC and adjacent non-tumorous tissue and to examine their relationship with other prognostic indicators.
Patients and methods: The current retrospective study was conducted upon 55 cases of selected HCV-associated hepatocellular carcinoma to examine STARD3, APOC1, SREBP2 expression by immunohistochemistry. Results: STARD3, APOC1, and SREBP2 showed a highly significant expression in HCV - induced HCC compared to adjacent non tumorous tissue (P< 0.001). STARD3 high expression revealed statistically significant association with tumor grade (P < 0.001), TNM stage (P < 0.001), BCLC staging (P < 0.001), tumor multiplicity (P < 0.05) and portal vein invasion (P < 0.05). A statistically significant linear relation was found between APOC1 high expression and TNM stage (P < 0.001), BCLC staging (P < 0.001), tumor grade (P < 0.05), tumor size (P < 0.05) and portal invasion (P< 0.05). High SREBP2 expression revealed statistically significant association with tumor grade (P < 0.001), TNM stage (P < 0.001) and BCLC staging (P < 0.001), tumor size (P < 0.05), portal vein invasion (P < 0.05) and multiplicity (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The levels of STARD3, APOC1, and SREBP2 were statistically significantly increased in hepatocellular carcinoma. High expression of these markers was closely linked to poor prognostic factors, including high tumor grade and advanced cancer stage.