Early Detection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: How to Screen and Follow up Patients with Liver Cirrhosis According to the GERMAN S3 Guideline?

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is frequently detected in pre-existing liver cirrhosis, but can also develop without such pre-conditions. There is an increasing trend of HCC incidence worldwide. In patients with liver cirrhosis, HCC has become the leading cause of death. At diagnosis the tumor has very often reached an advanced stage and curative treatment options are missing. Thus, early diagnosis would help the patient and prevent increasing healthcare costs. In our review we will summarize the recommendations of the German S3 guideline for the early diagnosis of HCC and will discuss the current literature in this context. The reader will learn which diagnostic tools are available and in what order they can be usefully applied. Surveillance should be done with ultrasound by a skilled examiner, additional imaging at best with state-of-the-art dynamic magnetic resonance.