Aging and Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Possible Molecular Mechanisms

Abstract

The world population is aging, meanwhile, the incidence and the mortality of the hepatocellular carcinoma are increasing year by year. The peak age of onset of HCC varies with the geographical locations. More than 40 years ago, the question "was there a relationship between carcinogenesis and aging?" was posed. Clinical research and epidemiological data gathered over the past few decades have suggested that process of aging must have played some role on the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. Understanding the mechanism of aging and its role in liver cancer is practically important in the prevention, early diagnosis, treatment, and prediction of prognosis. However, the molecular mechanisms by which aging predisposes hepatocarcinogenesis is largely unknown. In this chapter, we aim to review the possible molecular mechanisms of how aging might have promoted hepatic carcinogenesis.

Keywords: Hepatocellular carcinoma; aging; molecular biology; mechanisms.

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