[Tumours and inflammatory liver diseases]

Abstract

Several tumour entities have been described to develop in chronic inflammatory disease mainly hepatocellular carcinoma in chronic hepatitis. Compared to HCC bile duct carcinomas or other tumour entities are rare. The risk for HCC increases if liver cirrhosis occurred. Despite a huge progress in detecting many genes involved and altered in hepatocarcinogenesis the exact mechanisms of HCC development is not understood. Various causes initiate a multistep process of several steps: chronic liver injury, chronic inflammation, cell death, regeneration, cirrhosis, DNA damage, dysplasia and HCC. Molecular changes cannot be used for risk assessment of patients with liver cirrhosis or liver cell dysplasia. They are not helpful for problems in differential diagnosis between dysplasia and HCC.