2. Academic Validation
  3. Exosomes in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Comprehensive Review of Current Research and Future Directions

Exosomes in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Comprehensive Review of Current Research and Future Directions

  • J Cell Mol Med. 2025 Jul;29(14):e70723. doi: 10.1111/jcmm.70723.
Subham Sarkar 1,  Ashok Kumar Bishoyi 2,  R Roopashree 3,  Vishal Thakur 4,  Manpreet Kaur 5,  Pusparghya Pal 6,  Taha Alqahtani 7,  Ali Alqahtani 7,  Daniel Ejim Uti 8 9,  Esther Ugo Alum 8
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Center for Global Health Research, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Chennai, India.
  • 2 Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Marwadi University, Rajkot, Gujarat, India.
  • 3 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, School of Sciences, JAIN (Deemed to Be University), Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
  • 4 Centre for Research Impact & Outcome, Chitkara University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Chitkara University, Rajpura, Punjab, India.
  • 5 Department of Pharmacy, Chandigarh Pharmacy College, Chandigarh Group of Colleges-Jhanjeri, Mohali, Punjab, India.
  • 6 NIMS Institute of Pharmacy, NIMS University Rajasthan, Jaipur, India.
  • 7 Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, King Khalid University, Abha, Saudi Arabia.
  • 8 Department of Biochemistry/Research and Publications, Kampala International University, Kampala, Uganda.
  • 9 Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo, Benue State, Nigeria.
PMID: 40717226 DOI: 10.1111/jcmm.70723
Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common form of liver Cancer that is deadly and offers limited possible treatment options. This short review explored the role of exosomes (small vesicles released by cells) in HCC as either diagnostic or therapeutic possibilities. Exosomes facilitate tumour growth by carrying tumour-supportive material to promote angiogenesis and metastasis. At the same time, exosomes may serve as a tumour biomarker for early diagnosis or prognostic possibilities in HCC. In the future, exosomes may be used as targeted therapies for HCC patients by enabling engineered exosomes to deliver therapeutics to tumour cells with more specificity and lower side effects. Lastly, this review discussed exosome isolation and characterisation techniques, engineering engineered exosomes for therapeutics and clinical trials using exosomes as HCC treatment options. Many challenges remain, including scale of production and standardisation aspects; the future development of exosome therapeutics appears promising. This review underscores the importance of continuing research towards improving exosome technologies and using exosomes in combination therapies, as they may help develop safer and more efficient ways to improve HCC care.

Keywords

clinical trials in HCC; exosome therapy; exosome‐based diagnostics; hepatocellular carcinoma; isolation techniques for exosomes; tumour diagnostics.

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