HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA AND NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE: A DANGEROUS LIAISON

Liver cancer is one of the most frequent malignancies in the world, and its incidence rates are on the rise. Due to the global epidemic of metabolic syndrome, the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) secondary to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasing, contrary to viral forms. Characteristically NAFLD-related HCCs tend to occur at the earlier stages of liver disease, while often the diagnosis of neoplasia occurs later. They also affect an averagely older population, generally with a significantly higher number of co-morbidities. For these reasons, curative treatments are seldom applicable. Therefore, this work aims to illustrate the current state of knowledge on the NAFLD-related HCC and to underline the known pathogenetic mechanisms.