Abstract: Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate serumfibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) and Irx homeobox 5 (IRX5) level changes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). Methods 80 HCC patients were encountered in our hospital between January 2020 and October 2021, and all underwent TACE and followed-up for 36 months. Serum FGFR1, VEGFA and IRX5 levels were measured by using ELISA. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were applied to assess the predictive performance of postoperative serum biomarker levels for prognosis. Results By three months after treatment, objective remission (OR) was obtained in 45 cases and non-OR was found in 35 cases; serum FGFR1, VEGFA and IRX5 levels in OR group after TACE were (173.2±28.6)pg/ml, (79.3±17.2)pg/mland (47.4±5.6)ng/ml, all significantly lower than [(210.6±33.3)pg/ml, (103.4±19.3)pg/ml and (69.9±6.2)ng/ml, respectively, P<0.05] in non-OR group; ROC analysis showed that the AUC was 0.969(95%CI:0.924-1.000), with the sensitivity of 97.8% and the specificity of 97.1% when the three serum markers combined to predict efficacy after TACE; by end of 36 month, the survival rate was 48.8%, with 80.0% in OR group and 8.6% in non-OR (P<0.05). Conclusion Surveillance of serum FGFR1, VEGFA and IRX5 levels after TACE treatment might help predict efficacy and prognosis of patients with HCC.

Key words: Hepatoma, Transarterial chemoembolization, Fibroblast growth factor receptor 1, Vascular endothelial growth factor A, Irx homeobox 5, Therapy, Survival