Pathological and Immunochemical studies on

It has become apparent that hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major health problem worldwide particularly in developing countries like Egypt. The diagnosis of liver diseases caused by the infection is by taking a tissue (biopsy) sample from the liverThe present study was done on 72 cases (62 fibrotics and 10 hepatocellular carcinomas; HCCs) who referred to the Early Cancer Detection Unit for liver biopsy assessment. Their sera were tested for liver enzymes (alanine aminotrasferase [ALT], aspartate amThe results of this study showed the following;The serum ALT level at 60 U/L is indicative of significant fibrosis in 81%. Serum AST level at 130 U/L is indicative of significant fibrosis in 88%. However, the transaminases levels can’t differentiate, at any level between cancerous and non-cancerous leUnfortunately, the HCV level of viraemia and type did not affect the severity of liver disease.Finally, the age of the patient at biopsy was found to correlate positively with liver disease. The significant fibrosis was found in 81% of patients aged 45 years or more. While, at a cut off value of 55 years, age at biopsy is diagnostic for HCCs in 88%In conclusion, there is no single blood test whose value can predict the severity of liver diseases in HCV infection with 100% accuracy but the use of the above significant serum parameters together with age of the patient can help exclude the need for li