Lessons from rare tumors: Hepatic lymphoepithelioma-like carcinomas

In this review we focus on lymphoepitheliomalike hepatocellular carcinomas(LEL-HCC) and lymphoepithelioma-like cholangiocarcinomas(LEL-ICC). Despite their rarity, these tumors are of general interest because of their epidemiological and clinical features, and because they represent a distinct model of interaction between the immune systemand neoplastic cells. Approximately half of LELHCC arise in the context of chronic hepatitis C virus(HCV) infection and have been described both in Eastern and Western patients. By contrast, LEL-ICC is associated in almost all cases with Epstein-Barr virus(EBV) infection and exhibits the same epidemiological features of EBV related malignancies. Compared with classical hepatocellular carcinoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma of corresponding stage, both LEL-HCC and LEL-ICC are characterized by lower rates of recurrence after surgery and better overall survival. How this behavior is related to distinct genetic alterations and tumor microenvironment is unclear. The pathophysiological mechanisms of lymphoid infiltrations seem to be different among the two groups of tumors. In fact, LEL-HCC frequently arises in the context of inflammatory changes driven by HCV infection, and has been recognized as a variant of classical hepatocellular carcinoma. At variance, lymphocyte recruitment of LEL-ICC is similar to that described in nasopharyngeal carcinoma and gastric LEL, and possibly depends on the expression pattern of latent EBV infection.

Cognitive dysfunction and hepatitis C virus infection

Cognitive dysfunction in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus(HCV) infection is a distinct form of minimal hepatic encephalopathy(MHE). In fact, the majority of HCV-positive patients, irrespective of the grading of liver fibrosis, display alterations of verbal learning, attention, executive function, and memory when they are evaluated by suitable neuropsychological tests. Similarities between the cognitive dysfunction of HCV patients and MHE of patients with different etiologies are unclear. It is also unknown how the metabolic alterations of advanced liver diseases interact with the HCV-induced cognitive dysfunction, and whether these alterations are reversed by antiviral therapies. HCV replication in the brain may play a role in the pathogenesis of neuroinflammation. HCV-related brain dysfunction may be associated with white matter neuronal loss, alterations of association tracts and perfusion. It is unclear to what extent, in patients with cirrhosis, HCV triggers an irreversible neurodegenerative brain damage. New insights on this issue will be provided by longitudinal studies using the protocols established by the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders fifth edition for cognitive disorders. The domains to be evaluated are complex attention; executive functions; learning and memory; perceptual motor functions; social cognition. These evaluations should be associated with fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) protocols for major cognitive disorders including magnetic resonance spectroscopy, diffusion tensor imaging, magnetic resonance perfusion, and functional MRI. Also, the characteristics of portal hypertension, including the extent of liver blood flow and the type of portal shunts, should be evaluated.