Stopping Liver Cancer Linked to Metabolic Syndrome
Official title: Prevention of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Related to Metabolic Syndrome
Funded at Baylor College of Medicine · NIH-11146333 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work aims to find better ways to prevent liver cancer in people who have fatty liver disease caused by metabolic issues.
Quick facts
| Grant type | P01 program project |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Baylor College of Medicine NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2022 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,562,554 |
| NIH project number | 5P01CA263025-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11146333 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research would be adults aged 21 and older with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and cirrhosis.
✕Less likely to help
Patients whose liver cancer is not related to metabolic syndrome or fatty liver disease may not directly benefit from this specific research.
What this research studies
Liver cancer is a growing concern, especially for people with fatty liver disease related to metabolic problems. This project seeks to understand the risk factors and protective measures for this type of liver cancer. We are using information and samples from a large group of patients with cirrhosis to develop tools that can predict who is most at risk. The goal is to identify individuals early so that prevention strategies can be put into place.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new ways to identify individuals at high risk for liver cancer and offer them preventative treatments or closer monitoring.
How similar studies have gone: While the specific combination of approaches here is novel, previous research has shown success in using patient data and biomarkers to predict disease risk.
Where this research is happening
-
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: El-Serag, Hashem B — Baylor College of Medicine
- Study coordinator: El-Serag, Hashem B
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Prevention of Hepatocellular Cancer Related to Metabolic Disease
A multi-project effort to reduce deaths from liver cancer by studying people with metabolic-related liver disease and finding ways to predict risk and prevent cancer.
-
Reducing liver cancer risk in patients with metabolic syndrome
This study is looking to help people at risk of liver cancer by finding out what factors increase that risk and how to better prevent it, and it involves patients sharing samples and information to improve our understanding.
-
Glutamine and macrophage behavior in liver cancer
A funded project at a medical university aims to understand how the liver’s immune cells interact with a specific type of liver cancer by looking at metabolism, especially glutamine and ammonia.
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Adding PSMA PET/CT imaging to liver cancer care for veterans
This project tests a new PET imaging approach to help diagnose and guide treatment for liver cancer in veterans.
-
Blood markers to catch early liver cancer in Hispanic people with hepatitis B
This project will see if a blood test can find liver cancer earlier in Hispanic people who have chronic hepatitis B.
-
Early blood markers to find hepatitis B–related liver cancer in Hispanics
This project will use immune-related blood markers to find liver cancer earlier in people with chronic hepatitis B, focusing on Hispanic adults.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.