Impact of TP53 Mutations in Hepatocellular Carcinoma on Carcinogenesis, Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment

With almost 800.000 annual deaths, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has the fourth highest cancer mortality rate, owed mainly to late stage diagnosis and poor response to treatment. In average, approx. 30% of cases exhibit mutations within the TP53 gene, with much higher frequencies in Africa and China, where a specific hepatitis B virus (HBV) and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) related mutation (R249S) is present in 50% and 90% of cases, respectively, making TP53 the most frequently mutated tumor suppressor gene in HCC.