03 February 2026 : Original article
Diagnostic Utility of FAR1 Methylation Levels in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients Undergoing Liver Transplantation
Byeong-Gon Na
BCE 1, Shin Hwang ABCDEF 1*, Jinil Han BCD 2, Dong-Hwan Jung BCD 1, Gi-Won Song BCD 1, Yun Young Lee BCD 2, Eunyoung Tak BCD 3, Kyoung-Jin Lee BCD 3, Yun-Kyu Kim BCD 3
DOI: 10.12659/AOT.951568
Ann Transplant 2026; 31:e951568
Table 2 Comparison of FAR1 methylation, AFP and PIVKA-II levels in the HCC study, non-HCC cirrhotic-liver control, and normal-liver control patients.
| Parameters | HCC study group (A) | Non-HCC cirrhotic-liver control group (B) | Norma-liver control group (C) | p-value (A vs B) | p-value (A vs C) | p-value (B vs C) | p-value (A vs B vs C) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Case number | 23 | 12 | 10 | ||||
| FAR1 methylation expression (copies) | <0.001 | ||||||
| Mean | 31.6±74.5 | 1.5±3.5 | 0.1±0.4 | 0.067 | 0.196 | 0.199 | |
| Median | 4 (0–330) | 0 (0–12) | 0 (0–1.2) | 0.007 | <0.001 | 0.151 | |
| AFP (ng/mL) | 0.008 | ||||||
| Mean | 48.7±83.2 | 10.5±17.7 | 2.5±1.0 | 0.176 | 0.092 | 0.174 | |
| Median | 5.8 (1.4–282.1) | 3.7 (1–64) | 2.5 (1.0±4.1) | 0.149 | 0.002 | 0.156 | |
| PIVKA-II (mAU/mL) | 0.015 | ||||||
| Mean | 99.5±264.7 | 73.9±62.6 | 18.3±6.1 | 0.726 | 0.344 | 0.295 | |
| Median | 35 (10–1,305) | 22 (4–583) | 18.5 (7–27) | 0.502 | 0.004 | 0.322 | |
| AFP – α-fetoprotein; PIVKA-II – protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II. | |||||||