Published online Jun 18, 2015. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v7.i11.1460
Peer-review started: August 30, 2014
First decision: December 17, 2014
Revised: April 3, 2015
Accepted: April 27, 2015
Article in press: April 29, 2015
Published online: June 18, 2015
Processing time: 291 Days and 6.8 Hours
Core tip: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the few tumors in which the incidence is on the rise worldwide, especially in the United States. The overall increase in the incidence warrants efforts to prevent and to more efficiently treat this disease. This necessitates the need for a multidisciplinary approach for the management of HCC, because there are many etiological factors involved in the pathogenesis and malignant transformation of the disease. For example, there is a need to improve surveillance and early diagnosis through diagnostic imaging modalities to facilitate identification of potential molecular targets for novel therapeutic strategies. In turn, this will facilitate the identification of patients at risk. This review summarizes current knowledge on the clinical management of the disease as well as etiologic mechanisms of malignant transformation for better diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of HCC.