Circular RNA 0016788 displays as a biomarker for tumor progression and poor prognosis in surgical hepatocellular carcinoma patients

Objective This study aimed to investigate the clinical significance of circular RNA 0016788 (circ_0016788) regarding its correlation with tumor progression and survival in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods Two hundred and seventy-eight HCC patients who received tumor resection were retrospectively analyzed. Circ_0016788 expression in 278 tumor tissues and 116 adjacent tissues was detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results Circ_0016788 was elevated in tumor tissue compared with adjacent tissue, and it had an excellent value in distinguishing tumor tissue from adjacent tissue (area under the curve: 0.913; 95% confidence interval: 0.885-0.941). Furthermore, circ_0016788 correlated to higher performance status score, larger tumor size, increased Barcelona clinic liver cancer (BCLC) stage, abnormal aspartate aminotransferase, abnormal alpha-fetoprotein, and abnormal carbohydrate antigen 199 levels. Moreover, by Kaplan-Meier curve and log-rank test, circ_0016788 high expression correlated with shorter overall survival (OS). Importantly, multivariate Cox's regression analysis displayed that circ_0016788 high expression, older age (>= 60 years), history of hepatitis B, history of liver cirrhosis, raised Child-Pugh stage (B vs A), multifocal disease, largest tumor size (>= 5 cm), and increased BCLC stage (B vs A) were independent predictors for poorer OS. Conclusion Circ_0016788 displays the potential as a biomarker for assisting personalized treatment, tumor management, and prognosis surveillance in surgical HCC patients.