Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) are typically hypervascular and metastatic liver tumors (MLTs) are usually hypovascular. Although they both have malignant potential, their respective microvascular environments differ markedly. It is not clear whether the degree of angiogenesis and the grade of malignancy are related. This study investigated the relationship between angiogenesis and cell proliferative activity in liver tumors. We examined 21 surgically resected HCC nodules and 30 MLTs. To evaluate angiogenesis, we performed immunohistochemical staining for factor VIII-related antigen (F-VIII RAg), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) . Ki-67 antigen was used as a marker for tumor cell proliferative activity. The number of vessels positive for F-VIII RAg and the positivity rate of VEGF were higher in HCCs than in MLTs. However, the Ki-67 labeling index was higher in MLTs than in HCCs. Unexpectedly, there was no significant difference between the degree of angiogenesis and the level of cell proliferative activity in HCCs and MLTs.
These findings suggest that although HCCs are hypervascular, their proliferative activity is weak. Conversely, MLTs may proliferate at a greater rate with poorer angiogenic activity.
