Abbott Advances Early-Stage Liver Cancer Diagnosis Through Multidisciplinary Collaboration and the ASAP Risk Assessment Model
Abbott
Diagnostic and pharmaceutical product manufacturers
On July 7, 2023, the UNIVANTS of Healthcare Excellence International Academic Forum and 2023 Awards Ceremony was successfully held in Changchun, Jilin, China.Bethune Second Hospital of Jilin University Wins "2022 UNIVANTS Healthcare Excellence Award (Achievement Award)" with Innovative Application and Successful Practice of ASAP Liver Cancer Risk Assessment Model, Becoming the Only Winning Team from China.
UNIVANTS Excellence in Healthcare Awards Initiator Representative – Chen Ying, Vice President of Global Core Diagnostics at Abbott, and Professor Pan Zhenxiang, Deputy Hospital Leader of Norman Bethune Second Hospital of Jilin University, present the award to the winning team from Norman Bethune Second Hospital of Jilin University.
Moreover, the incidence rate gradually increases with age, posing a serious threat to people's lives and health. Early identification and diagnosis of high-risk populations for HCC are crucial to improving the overall survival rate of HCC patients, significantly enhancing patient prognosis, and ultimately reducing liver cancer-related mortality.
As one of the most important screening methods for early liver cancer currently, ultrasound diagnosis of liver cancer has limitations, and its results are easily influenced by the skill level of the ultrasound operator.[2][3]Moreover, patients with nodular cirrhosis are prone to misdiagnosis or even missed diagnosis. Therefore, serum biomarkers (such as alpha-fetoprotein AFP) are commonly used in clinical practice to detect and assist in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. However, data show that over 30% of liver cancer patients have normal or only slightly elevated AFP levels, especially in early-stage or small liver cancer patients.[4]In China, the ability of AFP to diagnose liver cancer is still somewhat limited.
To improve the diagnostic efficiency of hepatocellular carcinoma and compensate for the shortcomings of using a single serum biomarker in the past, Professor Shen Feng's team from Shanghai Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, in collaboration with 11 large tertiary hospitals in China, developed a predictive model based on the Abbott platform. This model incorporates the serum levels of two hepatocellular carcinoma markers (alpha-fetoprotein AFP, protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II PIVKA-II) and independent risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma (age, gender). It further enhances the prediction efficiency for detecting hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis B and establishes and validates the first hepatitis B-related hepatocellular carcinoma diagnostic model suitable for the Chinese population — the ASAP Hepatocellular Carcinoma Risk Assessment Model.[4]。
This model has extremely high diagnostic efficacy and clinical practicality. The multidisciplinary clinical diagnosis and treatment team of Bethune Second Hospital of Jilin University successfully applied this risk assessment model and submitted the project "Application of a Non-Invasive Serum Hepatocellular Carcinoma Risk Assessment Model Based on Intelligent Information Solutions to Optimize Clinical Decision-Making and Improve Patient Safety." This project stood out among numerous global cases and won an award. The project can reduce unnecessary invasive examinations for suspected liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma patients, maximize the diagnosis and treatment outcomes for patients, lower treatment costs, and improve prognosis.
"Extend the warmest congratulations to the Second Bethune Hospital of Jilin University. We also express our heartfelt gratitude to Professor Shen Feng and his team from the Shanghai Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, the developers of the ASAP model, for bringing benefits to more patients. As the initiator of the UNIVANTS of Healthcare Excellence Award, Abbott aims to encourage collaboration between clinical and laboratory fields, empowering the enhancement of healthcare quality through data-driven insights from laboratories. We are delighted to see yet another outstanding practice from a Chinese medical institution receiving a world-class award. As a leader in the diagnostics industry, Abbott is committed to continuously delivering significant innovations of great medical value to the field."
In the future, we will continue to innovate and explore in important fields such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and infectious diseases. Through high-quality diagnostic products and cutting-edge technologies like disease risk assessment models, we will support the intelligent upgrading of medical institutions in China and promote the high-quality development of China's healthcare industry.
The "UNIVANTS of Healthcare Excellence Award," initiated by Abbott and jointly evaluated and presented with seven leading global healthcare organizations (IFCC, AACC, EHMC, Modern Healthcare, HIMSS, NAHQ, IHE), aims to recognize outstanding teams worldwide that improve quantifiable healthcare quality for patients, payers, clinicians, and the entire health system through multidisciplinary collaboration and integrated clinical care.
After more than 30 years of deep cultivation in the Chinese market, Abbott is committed to providing more Chinese patients with access to high-quality diagnosis and treatment. In the future, Abbott will continue to uphold the concept of "patient-centeredness," constantly introducing efficient and intelligent innovative solutions to contribute to the early screening, early diagnosis, and early treatment of diseases. By helping people live healthy and vibrant lives, Abbott supports the realization of the "Healthy China" vision.
