RESUMO
BACKGROUND: It was necessary to assess the relationship between Yes-associated protein (YAP) and some clinical features of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), especially hepatitis B virus (HBV) correlation factors as they relate to tumorigenesis. METHODS: A tissue microarray including 84 HCC samples was retrospectively analyzed by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: This study showed that YAP expression was associated with HCC differentiation and the patient age at diagnosis of HCC. The mean age at diagnosis of YAP(+) HCC patients was 46.19 ± 9.45 years old, which is youn- ger than 51.40 ± 12.51 years old found for YAP(-) HCC patients (< 0.048). There was no significant correlation between YAP expression and HBV correlation factors (HBsAg, HBV DNA, and the duration of hepatitis B infec- tion). CONCLUSIONS: YAP(+) HCC patients had a younger mean age at diagnosis and more poor-differentiation charac- teristics of HCC. However, there were no independent HBV correlation factors.