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Although the death rate of all cancers is decreasing, liver cancer is increasing.

This is because it is difficult to prevent and treat liver fibrosis, which is the seed of liver cancer, at an early stage, and a domestic research team has opened up the possibility of a solution.



Cho Dong-chan is a medical journalist.



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Mr. Choi was diagnosed with liver cancer this year.



Six years after he was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver, a hardening of the liver.



[Liver cancer patient: At that time, he had cirrhosis (liver) and ate a little bit of the corner.

It must have been 5-6 years ago.]



80% of liver cancers start with liver cirrhosis, and liver cirrhosis is caused by liver fibrosis.



When it is hepatitis, there are treatment drugs and it can be restored to normal, but when the liver is fibrotic, there is no treatment drug and it is difficult to return to normal.



The 5-year survival rate after cancer diagnosis is gradually improving for breast cancer (95%), stomach cancer (92%), and colorectal cancer (79.5%), but liver cancer is still only 38%.



Genes, DNA, ultimately create proteins. For example, oncogenes produce cancer proteins, resulting in cancer.



However, since several genes work in a complex way, finding one cancer gene and suppressing it does not cure cancer.



However, if you find the cancer protein that is finally produced by the cancer gene and suppress it, it can become a treatment drug right away.



Liver fibrosis, although many genes have been identified, the related proteins have not been known.



That's why there was no cure.



However, a domestic research team has identified a protein related to liver fibrosis.



[Seong Pil-soo/Professor of Internal Medicine at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital: By revealing the structure of a protein, it is easier to make a chemical or biological agent that targets the protein.



] About 1 in 2 people will have liver fibrosis.



Apart from treatment, if you have hepatitis, you should actively correct the cause, such as obesity, alcohol, or hepatitis virus.



(Video coverage: Han Il-sang, video editing: Kim Byung-jik, CG: Jeon Yoo-geun · Lim Chan-hyeok)