[Correlation analysis between expression of cytokeratin 19 and clinical pathological characteristics and prognosis of dual-phenotype hepatocellular carcinoma].

Objective: To investigate the correlation between the expression of the immunohistochemical marker cytokeratin (CK)-19 and the clinical characteristics and prognosis of dual-phenotype hepatocellular carcinoma (DPHCC). Methods: The data of patients diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who underwent surgical resection were collected. DPHCC cases were screened by immunohistochemistry, followed up, and grouped. The correlation between the expression of the immunohistochemical marker CK-19 and the clinical pathological characteristics and prognosis of DPHCC was analyzed by statistical methods. The enumeration data were compared using the χ2 test or Fisher's exact probability method between groups. Results: The expression of CK19 was significantly correlated with factors such as the tumor size, histological grade, liver tissue cirrhosis surroundings, microvascular invasion (MVI), and serum carbohydrate antigen 199 (CA-199) levels in DPHCC, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). There was no significant correlation between the expression of CK19 and the gender, age, tumor necrosis, multiple lesions, liver capsule invasion, serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), and immunohistochemical CK7 and mucin 1 (MUC-1) in DPHCC patients, and the differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05). The results of univariate analysis showed that immunohistochemical CK19 expression, MVI, number of lesions, tumor necrosis, tumor differentiation degree, serum AFP, and carbohydrate antigen 199 levels were related factors affecting the prognosis in DPHCC patients (P<0.05); while gender, age, capsule invasion, tumor size, and expression of immunohistochemical markers (vascular endothelial growth factor, CK7, MUC-1) were not significantly correlated with the prognosis in DPHCC patients (P>0.05). The results of multivariate analysis showed that tumor necrosis (P=0.042, 95%CI: 1.031-5.501) and serum AFP levels were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis in DPHCC patients (P<0.001, 95%CI: 2.581-24.075). Conclusions: The expression of CK19 is closely related to the prognosis of patients with DPHCC. Patients with high CK19 expression have faster disease progression than those with low CK19 expression. Furthermore, the overall survival rate of patients with high CK19 expression is significantly lower than that of patients with low CK19 expression, which is a risk factor for poor prognosis in patients with DPHCC.