Milestones in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) Research – Worldwide

In recent years, Austrian researchers have made substantial contributions to the field of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Notably, novel prognostic markers and risk-stratification tools have been developed for systemic immunotherapy, transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), and liver transplantation.In particular, the CRAFITY score, sarcopenia, and dynamic IgG changes significantly refine prognostic assessment under immunotherapy.For intermediate-stage disease, the STATE, ART, and START scores enable increasingly individualized decisions regarding TACE suitability.A possible advancement in transplant selection is the AFP-UTS model, which integrates morphological tumor characteristics from the Up-to-seven criteria combined with AFP levels, allowing reliable discrimination between patients with favorable tumor biology and those at high risk of post-transplant recurrence.Additionally, the efficacy and safety of systemic first-and second-line therapies have been externally validated through large multicenter real-world cohorts involving Austrian centers.This applies particularly to heterogeneous patient populations and includes Sorafenib, Lenvatinib, Cabozantinib, and the Atezolizumab-Bevacizumab combination, now established as the standard first-line immunotherapy for advanced HCC.