Level and clinical significance of serum CXC chemokine ligand 13 in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Abstract

Background: CXC chemokine ligand 13 (CXCL13) serves as the ligand for chemokine receptor 5 (CXCR5), The CXCL13/CXCR5 signaling axis plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis and progression of various malignancies. This study aimed to assess the expression and role of serum CXCL13 in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and explore its clinical significance in the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis evaluation of HCC.

Methods: Serum samples and clinical data were collected from 74 HCC patients, 51 cirrhosis patients, and 53 healthy controls. The expression level of serum CXCL13 was measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Statistical software was employed to analyze the relationship between CXCL13 levels and clinicopathological features as well as laboratory indicators. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to evaluate the diagnostic value of CXCL13 and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for HCC.

Results: The level of serum CXCL13 in the HCC group (275.96±145.35 pg/mL) was significantly higher than that in the cirrhosis group (172.11±142.78 pg/mL) and healthy control group (58.83±41.29 pg/mL). The level of CXCL13 in HCC patients with tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage III-IV was significantly higher than that in those with TNM stage I-II, as well as positively correlated with γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) and model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) values. The area under the ROC curve for CXCL13, AFP, and the combination of CXCL13 with AFP were 0.819, 0.813, and 0.885 respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of the combined CXCL13 with AFP were 88.9% and 77.9% respectively. Moreover, the diagnostic efficacy of combining CXCL13 with AFP was significantly superior to that of using either CXCL13 or AFP alone.

Conclusions: The expression of CXCL13 is upregulated in HCC patients and associated with tumor size, metastasis, GGT, and MELD score. Combining serum CXCL13 with AFP may hold clinical value to the diagnosis of HCC.