Sirenda Vong, Beth P. Bell – 30 January 2004 – In 1998, chronic liver disease (CLD) was the tenth leading cause of death in the U.S. Alcohol and hepatitis C are thought to be important etiologies. However, traditional methods for calculating CLD mortality rates from death certificates may underestimate hepatitis C‐related CLD mortality. We studied patterns of CLD deaths reported from 1990 through 1998, using an expanded definition that included death certificates where CLD, viral hepatitis, or CLD‐related sequelae were reported as the underlying cause.

Brian J. McMahon, Thomas W. Hennessy, Carol Christensen, Dana Bruden, Daniel G. Sullivan, Chriss Homan, Heike Deubner, Michael G. Bruce, Stephen Livingston, James Williams, David R. Gretch – 30 January 2004 – Large cohorts of persons infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) that include patients with multiple risk exposures and behaviors have been rarely reported. We herein describe a population‐based cohort of 759 Alaska Natives (AN) with HCV who were recruited into a long‐term follow‐up study. History of injection drug use (IDU) was reported by 60.1% and blood transfusion by 14.0%.

Aránzazu Sánchez, Valentina M. Factor, Insa S. Schroeder, Peter Nagy, Snorri S. Thorgeirsson – 30 January 2004 – Proliferation and differentiation of hepatic stem cell progenies (i.e., oval cells) sustain liver regeneration when the replicative and functional capacity of hepatocytes is impaired. The signaling pathways that control stem cell activation remain poorly understood.

Massimo Roncalli – 30 January 2004 – The spectrum of so‐called space‐occupying small (0.5–2.5 cm) sizable nodules arising in the cirrhotic liver includes a series of hyperplastic (large regenerative), dysplastic (low‐ and high‐grade dysplastic), and malignant hepatocellular (well‐differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma, HCC) nodules. Major progress in their classification and understanding was achieved through image analysis techniques and careful histological dissection of explanted native livers.

Masatoshi Makuuchi, Keiji Sano – 30 January 2004 – Due to the prevalence of hepatitis virus infection, the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is very high in Japan. Many techniques have been devised by Japanese surgeons to reduce the mortality rate after hepatectomy for HCC: preoperative precise evaluation of hepatic functional reserve, portal venous embolization as preoperative preparation, anatomical and nonanatomical limited resections using intraoperative ultrasonography, and intermittent inflow occlusion during liver transection.

Anurag Maheshwari, Rajnish Mishra, Paul J. Thuluvath – 30 January 2004 – Anemia is common after liver transplantation, with the incidence ranging from 4.3% to 28.2% depending on the criteria used to define anemia. The cause of anemia is unidentified in the majority of patients, and it is likely to be multifactorial. Immunosuppressive‐medication‐induced bone marrow suppression is perhaps the most common cause of unexplained anemia. Chronic blood loss, iron deficiency, hemolysis, and renal insufficiency are other potential causes of chronic anemia.

Pietro Amoroso, Salvatore Buonocore, Gennaro Lettieri, Paola Pierri, Alfonso Mele – 30 January 2004

Adrian Reuben – 30 January 2004

Roberto J. Groszmann, Suchat Wongcharatrawee – 30 January 2004

Minoru Ogawa, Hirofumi Yamamoto, Hiroaki Nagano, Yasuhiro Miyake, Yurika Sugita, Taishi Hata, Byung‐no Kim, Chew Yee Ngan, Bazarragchaa Damdinsuren, Masakazu Ikenaga, Masataka Ikeda, Masayuki Ohue, Shoji Nakamori, Mitsugu Sekimoto, Masato Sakon, Nariaki Matsuura, Morito Monden – 30 January 2004 – We examined the RNA content of the gene encoding angiopoietin (Ang)‐2, a modifier of angiogenesis, in hepatic metastases of colorectal cancer (CRC) to explore the role of this protein in neovascularization of metastatic foci.