ObjectiveTo observe the changes of serum lipopolysaccharides(LPS), Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4) and intestinal microecology in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE).

MethodsEleven patients with HCC were treated with TACE, and no drug was added to affect the intestinal microecological changes before and after treatment.The serum levels of LPS and TLR4 and intestinal microecological changes were obserevd before 1 day of operation and after 1 week and 1 month of operation.

ResultsThe differences of the serum levels of LPS and TLR4 in patients among before 1 day of operation and after 1 week and 1 month of operation were statistically significant(P < 0.01).The results of Bonferroni's pairwise comparative analysis showed that the level of LPS before 1 day of operation was lower than that after 1 week and 1 month of operation, and the level of TLR4 after 1 month of operation was lower than that before 1 day of operation and after 1 week of operation(P < 0.05 to P < 0.01).The results of ACE index difference analysis showed that the abundance of intestinal flora increased slightly at 1 week after operation, and then decreased in the following 1 month, which was lower than that before 1 day of operation.The results of One-way ANOVA analysis showed that the abundance of probiotic bacteria such as Bacteroides and Lachnospira were higher than that before 1 day of operation and after 1 week of operation, the abundance of Streptococcus and Lactobacillus were lower than that before 1 day of operation and after 1 week of operation, and the differences of which among three groups were statistically significant(P < 0.05).

ConclusionsAfter the treatment of primary liver cancer with TACE, the intestinal microecological balance can be significantly promoted through the hepato-intestinal axis.Meanwhile, the intestinal microbial homeostasis can not only be used as an indicator for the evaluation of liver cancer after TACE, but also promote the prognosis of liver cancer.