
Current Status and Future Perspectives in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Biliary Tract Cancers
Executive Chief Editor: JIANG Xiaoqing
Biliary tract cancer (BTC) is a type of tumor with high invasiveness and heterogeneity, and its incidence rate is increasing year by year. In recent years, with the breakthroughs in targeted therapy and immunotherapy, as well as the wide application of genetic testing techniques, the treatment of BTC has evolved from traditional surgery and local treatment to a stage of the combination of multiple treatment methods, providing more reasonable and effective treatment regimens for patients at different stages. This article reviews the current evidence-based medical data in the treatment of BTC, analyzes the current status of treatment, and discusses the future development directions of BTC treatment.
Biliary tract cancer (BTC) is a highly malignant gastrointestinal tumor with a poor prognosis, and its limited treatment options and complex tumor microenvironment have posed significant challenges in clinical treatment. This article systematically describes the fundamental features of the immunosupressive microenvironment in BTC and reviews the role of immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of BTC, as well as the emerging strategies such as cancer vaccines and adoptive cell transfer therapy. Although the improvement in treatment outcome is limited by high tumor heterogeneity and the immunosuppressive microenvironment, it is expected to improve the prognosis of BTC patients by constructing a biomarker system based on multi-omics, exploring novel combined treatment strategies, and deeply regulating the tumor microenvironment.
Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) is a highly aggressive malignant tumor with poor prognosis, and its incidence rate is gradually increasing in recent years. This article reviews the main local treatment methods for iCCA and the advances in related systemic therapies, with a focus on the current status of research on local treatment combined with targeted therapy and immunotherapy, highlighting their advantages in improving objective response rate and prolonging progression-free survival and overall survival. This article points out that immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy has become the first-line standard treatment for unresectable iCCA, while the regimen of local treatment combined with targeted therapy and immunotherapy has shown promising potential in clinical translation and sustained efficacy in early-phase studies. The authors believe that in the future, multicenter prospective studies are needed to verify the efficacy and safety of the above treatment regimen, determine the optimal combined treatment regimen, and define suitable patient populations, in order to provide new ideas for the comprehensive treatment of iCCA.
Perihilar cholangiocarcinoma (pCCA) originates from the biliary epithelium at the confluence of the left and right hepatic ducts, and most patients are in the advanced stage at the time of confirmed diagnosis due to complex anatomy, insidious early symptoms, and highly aggressive tumor biology. Although radical resection remains the preferred treatment method, there is still a low 5-year survival rate after surgery. Since Mayo Clinic proposed a protocol combining neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy with strict screening criteria, long-term outcomes of pCCA have been significantly improved after liver transplantation. With the expansion of donor liver sources, the maturation of living-donor liver transplantation techniques, and the optimization of immunosuppression strategies, liver transplantation has gradually become a standardized treatment regimen for specific patients with pCCA. This article systematically reviews the current status of liver transplantation for the treatment of pCCA, the criteria for indications, the strategies for neoadjuvant therapy before surgery, postoperative management, and recurrence prevention and control, as well as the directions for future development such as precise molecular subtyping, combined immunotherapy, and the optimization of donor organ resources.
Incidental gallbladder cancer (IGBC) refers to gallbladder cancer discovered incidentally during pathological examination after cholecystectomy for benign gallbladder diseases, and characterized by a high rate of missed diagnosis before surgery, wide staging variability, and complex treatment decision-making, IGBC poses a significant challenge in biliary tract oncology. With reference to existing evidence, this article systematically reviews the epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnostic status, and treatment strategies of IGBC, analyzes existing bottlenecks in diagnosis and treatment, and proposes the future prospects from the aspects of precise early diagnosis, individualized treatment guided by molecular subtyping, and establishment of multidisciplinary collaboration models, in order to provide a reference for clinical practice and research.
Life expectancy of people living with HIV (PLWH) has markedly increased due to the widespread use of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). However, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a prevalent and severe comorbidity in this population. PLWH with MASLD exhibit distinct pathophysiological features, and disease management is further complicated by the long-term exposure to cART. Existing MASLD guidelines have not fully addressed the unique characteristics of PLWH. This expert consensus aims to provide standardized recommendations for the screening, diagnosis, and management of MASLD in PLWH, with an emphasis on early detection, identification of high-risk populations, individualized risk assessment, and multidisciplinary care to improve long-term outcomes and reduce the risk of liver disease progression and associated complications.
Globally, there are approximately 258 million individuals living with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), resulting in about 1.1 million deaths annually due to hepatitis B-related cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Data from the United States suggest that the actual burden of infection may be as high as 1.8 million, with around half of those infected remaining undiagnosed. In November 2025, the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) jointly released an updated practice guideline for the management of CHB, which was developed based on previous guideline recommendations and the latest evidence-based research. This article provides a translated summary of the key recommendations from this guideline.
This article provides a systematic comparative analysis of the key recommendations between the “AASLD/IDSA Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B (2025 edition)” and the “Chinese Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B (2022 edition)”. The comparison focuses on the following seven core domains: background and significance; methodology; prevention and screening strategies; treatment indications and indicators for treatment discontinuation; drug selection and therapeutic strategies; management of special populations; and liver cancer screening and management. By examining areas of consensus and divergence, this article highlights the differences and similarities in evidence-based approaches and clinical practice pathways between the two guidelines, in order to provide a reference for clinical decision-making concerning individualized diagnosis and treatment, as well as targeted management of hepatitis B patients in clinical practice.
In 2025, Expert Committee of the Clinical Laboratory Alliance, National Center for Infectious Diseases, organized related experts to develop Expert consensus on the detection and clinical application of hepatitis C virus markers (2025 edition). This consensus outlines the objectives for hepatitis C prevention and control, identifies target populations for testing, and provides guidance on biomarkers, testing methods, and sample transportation. It also proposes optimized testing strategies tailored to the epidemiological characteristics of hepatitis C in China and the specific features of its diagnostic markers. The focus of this consensus is to address the shortcomings of traditional detection methods, such as prolonged window periods and missed diagnoses in immunocompromised populations, thereby improving the detection rate of hepatitis C. The consensus is of great importance for eliminating the public health threat of viral hepatitis in China. This article provides an interpretation of the consensus, in order to provide clearer practical guidance for the clinical testing of hepatitis C.
Copper is one of the essential trace elements in the human body and participates in mitochondrial respiration, energy metabolism, and antioxidant processes in the form of coenzymes or copper-containing proteins. Intracellular copper accumulation mainly manifests as abnormal copper accumulation within mitochondria, leading to abnormalities in mitochondrial morphology and function. the pathological process of metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is closely associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. Studies have confirmed that copper overload can promote the development and progression of MAFLD; however, there is still a lack of systematic summarization of the mechanisms by which copper overload induces mitochondrial dysfunction and leads to MAFLD and related advances in drug research. In this context, this article reviews the research advances in the mechanisms by which copper overload induces mitochondrial dysfunction and leads to MAFLD, as well as related advances in drug research, in order to provide a theoretical reference for further investigation and treatment of MAFLD.
Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a chronic liver disease closely associated with metabolic disorders, and the onset of MAFLD is associated with lipotoxicity caused by the accumulation of a large amount of fat in hepatocytes. Recent studies have shown that mitochondrial dysfunction is an important mechanism for the development of MAFLD, involving a series of pathological changes including mitochondrial oxidative stress, abnormal mitochondrial autophagy, abnormal mitochondrial apoptosis, and abnormal mitochondrial lipid metabolism. Based on the two characteristics of holistic view and syndrome differentiation-based treatment, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of MAFLD. This article reviews the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in various pathological processes of MAFLD and the intervention effect of TCM, in order to provide new ideas and methods for TCM in the prevention and treatment of MAFLD from the perspective of mitochondrial function.
There has been a gradual increase in the incidence rate of metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD)-related liver fibrosis year by year, and its progression may eventually lead to liver cirrhosis and even liver cancer. There are changes in the pathways of glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, and protein metabolism, which provide necessary energy support for the activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC), thereby promoting the progression of liver fibrosis. Existing studies have clarified the specific mechanisms of metabolic reprogramming in regulating the activation of HSC such as the activation of HSC and enhanced glycolysis, the formation of a lactic acid microenvironment, the inhibition of fatty acid β-oxidation, the accumulation of lipotoxicity, enhanced glutamine decomposition, and changes in protein stability and S-adenosylmethionine (SAM). Moreover, the formation of a lactic acid microenvironment, the accumulation of lipotoxicity, and changes in SAM can accelerate the progression of liver fibrosis. This article systematically reviews the changes in related metabolic pathways in MAFLD-related liver fibrosis and the synergistic effect between them, in order to provide an important theoretical basis for revealing the pathogenesis of this disease and developing new treatment strategies.
The pathogenesis of autoimmune liver disease (AILD) remains unclear, leading to significant individual differences in clinical outcomes. Recent studies have shown that intestinal flora and its metabolites are closely associated with the development, progression, and pathogenesis of AILD through the gut-liver axis, and targeted therapy based on intestinal flora has provided new strategies for the treatment of AILD. This article systematically reviews the potential pathogenic mechanism of intestinal flora in AILD and the latest research advances in targeted therapeutic strategies and explores the possibility of targeted regulation of intestinal microecology to achieve treatment by analyzing the molecular mechanisms of immune disorders mediated by imbalance of intestinal flora, in order to provide a theoretical basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment.
Liver fibrosis is a key pathological stage in the progression of chronic liver diseases to liver cirrhosis and is characterized by excessive extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition. As critical mediators of cell-ECM crosstalk, integrins play an important role in the development and progression of liver fibrosis. The integrin family includes α and β subunits and is widely involved in the regulation of cell adhesion, migration, and signal transduction. In the process of liver fibrosis, the expression of integrins is upregulated, and its interaction with ECM promotes the activation and proliferation of hepatic stellate cells, further accelerating the synthesis and deposition of ECM. The increases in the expression of integrins αVβ3 and αVβ6 are closely associated with the activation of the TGF-β signaling pathway. In addition, integrins also modulate inflammatory responses and tissue regeneration and repair in the liver. Based on the above mechanisms, integrins have become the potential targets for the treatment of liver fibrosis, and inhibitors targeting integrins may become a new strategy for the treatment of liver fibrosis.
Primary liver cancer is a highly prevalent malignant tumor worldwide, with limited treatment options and individual difference in treatment outcome, and therefore, there is an urgent need to explore new treatment strategies. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has unique advantages in the treatment of liver cancer, and “deficient Qi retention and stagnation” is one of the important syndrome differentiation-based theories. Based on this theory, it is believed that the development and progression of liver cancer are closely associated with Qi deficiency and Qi stagnation, and in particular, “deficient Qi retention and stagnation” can lead to Qi-blood disharmony in the liver, thereby impairing liver function and metabolism. Recent years have shown that mitochondria play a pivotal role in cellular energy metabolism, oxidative stress, and cell apoptosis, and abnormal mitochondrial function is closely associated with the development and progression of liver cancer. With reference to the latest research advances in the theory of “deficient Qi retention and stagnation” and mitochondrial function, this article discusses their association and role in primary liver cancer and summarizes the research advances in TCM treatment of primary liver cancer by regulating mitochondrial function, in order to provide a reference for future clinical studies.
Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) is characterized by an insidious onset, strong invasiveness, and a poor prognosis, and there are great challenges in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of iCCA. It is urgently needed in clinical practice to optimize the treatment strategies for this disease and implement individualized diagnosis and treatment. By quantifying the prognostic risks and potential treatment benefits of patients, clinical predictive models can provide objective evidence for clinical decision-making, showing an increasingly important application value in the diagnosis and treatment of iCCA. This article systematically reviews the recent research advances in the predictive models for the diagnosis and treatment of iCCA and their clinical application value, in order to enhance the clinical translational value of these models and provide support for developing individualized treatment regimens.
Metabolic reprogramming is a prerequisite and important marker for macrophage phenotypic transition, and different macrophage phenotypes are involved in the pathogenesis of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) by regulating the balance of inflammatory responses, thereby becoming the potential targets for ACLF treatment. This article focuses on the changes in macrophage metabolic reprogramming during ACLF and its mechanism in mediating ACLF severity and prognosis by regulating energy metabolism and immune inflammation, in order to provide new ideas and directions for developing prevention and control strategies for ACLF based on macrophage metabolic reprogramming.
Liver failure is a clinical syndrome in which the speed of hepatocyte necrosis exceeds the self-repair capacity of the liver and is caused by various pathogenic factors, posing a serious threat to human health. Due to the complex pathogenesis, high incidence rate, and high mortality rate of liver failure and a lack of effective treatment methods, the treatment of liver failure remains a global challenge and a difficult issue. As an important mechanism by which the liver responds to liver injury, liver regeneration is one of the key factors for successful treatment of liver failure patients and plays a vital role in the development and prognosis of liver failure. Liver regeneration is an extremely complex biological process involving multiple cytokines and transcription factors, which jointly promote hepatocyte proliferation and tissue repair by activating various signaling pathways. This article systematically reviews the molecular mechanism of liver regeneration in liver failure, emphasizes the key role of cytokines (such as interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and hepatocyte growth factor) and related signaling pathways in regulating hepatocyte proliferation and tissue repair, and explores the therapeutic potential of liver regeneration in the context of liver failure, in order to provide a reference for the basic research on liver regeneration in liver failure.
Chronic liver disease refers to the pathological process in which the liver is affected by various pathogenic factors for a long time, gradually leading to hepatitis, hepatic fibrosis, liver cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma, and it is a group of complex refractory diseases that severely impairs liver function. As a novel post-translational and epigenetic modification, lactylation modification dynamically regulates gene transcriptional expression and downstream cellular function through the covalent binding of lactate to lysine residues on target proteins. Recent studies have shown that chronic liver disease is often accompanied by abnormal lactate metabolism. As a key metabolic product of the liver, lactate holds a significant research value, and lactylation modification plays a pivotal role in metabolic reprogramming, immune regulation, and fibrogenesis through metabolic-epigenetic interactions. This article introduces the epidemiology of chronic liver disease and reviews the molecular mechanism of lactylation modification and its regulatory effect on hepatocyte metabolism, gene pathways, and hepatic stellate cell activation, as well as its potential as a diagnostic biomarker and a therapeutic target, in order to provide new insights into the biochemical and molecular biological mechanisms of lactylation modification in chronic liver disease.
Pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant tumor of the digestive system with an extremely poor prognosis, and traditional treatment methods have a limited effect in prolonging the survival time of patients. In recent years, ground-breaking advances have been achieved for immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in a variety of solid tumors, among which programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4) have attracted much attention as major immune checkpoint targets. Although single-agent treatment with PD-1 or CTLA-4 inhibitor has an unsatisfactory effect in PC, the strategy of dual blockade has shown greater therapeutic potential. Starting from the immune microenvironment of PC, this article systematically reviews the biological characteristics of PD-1 and CTLA-4 and the current status of their single-agent applications, discusses the research advances and challenges in dual-targeted therapy for PC, and proposes the prospects for future development in this field.
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- 1Current situation in the research of Gilbert’s syndrome
- 2Review of acute pancreatitis scoring systems
- 3Clinical value of 13C-methacetin breath test for assessing liver function in patients with cirrhosis
- 4Studies on relevant gactors of Child-Pugh grading in hepatic cirrhosis
- 5Meta-analysis of 111 patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis-associated hepatocellular carcinoma
- 6Relationship between Epstein-Barr virus infection and hepatic lesions in children
- 7Research state and prospect of hyponatremia in cirrhosis
- 8Congenital bile acid synthesis defect and cholestatic liver disease
- 9Interventional treatment for Budd-Chiari syndrome:reports of 883 cases
- 10
- 1The guideline of prevention and treatment for chronic hepatitis B: a 2015 update
- 2Chinese guidelines for the management of acute pancreatitis ( Shenyang , 2019 )
- 3The guideline of prevention and treatment for chronic hepatitis B(2010 version)
- 4Comprehensive guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer (2018 version)
- 5Consensus on the diagnosis and management of primary biliary cirrhosis (cholangitis)(2015)
- 6Diagnosis, management, and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (V2017)
- 7Current situation in the research of Gilbert’s syndrome
- 8Consensus on the diagnosis and management of autoimmune hepatitis(2015)
- 9Guidelines for the prevention and treatment of chronic hepatitis B (version 2019)
- 10
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