Acylcarnitine: Useful biomarker for early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma in non-steatohepatitis patients

Figure 3 Acetylcarnitine is associated with vascular endothelial growth factor and hepatocellular carcinoma progression in non-steatohepatitis patients. A: ROC analysis of acetylcarnitine (AC2) for the early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in non-steatohepatitis patients revealed that the cutoff value was 3.18, the specificity was 84.2%, the sensitivity was 100%, and the AUC was 0.925; B: The patients were categorized into two groups according to the ROC cutoff vale for AC2 (low, < 3.18; and high, ≥ 3.18). The patients with AC2 < 3.18 had a significantly higher level of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) compared with those with AC2 ≥ 3.18. The patients with HCC were categorized into two groups according to the median cutoff value for total tumor volume (low, < 6.3 and high, ≥ 6.3); C: The HCC patients with a total tumor volume of ≥ 6.3 had a significantly higher VEGF/AC2 ratio compared with those with a total tumor volume of < 6.3. AC2: acetylcarnitine; VEGF: vascular endothelial growth factor.