New Research Paper: Mast Cells in the Microenvironment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Confer Favorable Prognosis: A Retrospective Study using QuPath Image Analysis Software

Ali E, Červenková L, Pálek R, Ambrozkiewicz F, Pavlov S, Ye W, Hošek P, Daum O, Liška V, Hemminki K, Trailin A. Mast Cells in the Microenvironment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Confer Favorable Prognosis: A Retrospective Study using QuPath Image Analysis Software. J Vis Exp. 2024 Apr 12;(206). doi: 10.3791/66743. PMID: 38682951.

A new research paper authored by the team of the Laboratory of Translation Cancer Genomics has recently been published:

The insights provided by in-situ detection of immune cells within hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) might present information on patient outcomes. Studies investigating the expression and localization of immune cells within tumor tissues are associated with several challenges, including a lack of precise annotation for tumor regions and random selection of microscopic fields of view. QuPath is an open-source, user-friendly software that could meet the growing need for digital pathology in whole-slide image (WSI) analysis. The infiltration of HCC and adjacent tissues by CD1a+ immature dendritic cells (iDCs), CD117+ mast cells, and NKp46+ natural killer cells (NKs) cells was assessed immunohistochemically in representative specimens of 67 patients with HCC who underwent curative resection. The area fraction (AF) of positively stained cells was assessed automatically in WSIs using QuPath in the tumor center (TC), inner margin (IM), outer margin (OM), and peritumor (PT) area. The prognostic significance of immune cells was evaluated for time to recurrence (TTR), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). 

To read the full paper, follow this link.