Development of an immune-related prognostic index associated with hepatocellular carcinoma

Liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC), an inflammation-associated cancer induced by a variety of etiological factors, is still one of the most prevalent and lethal cancers in human population. In this study, the expression profiles of immune-related genes (IRGs) were integrated with the overall survival (OS) of 378 LIHC patients based on the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset. Moreover, the differentially expressed and survival related IRGs among LIHC patients were predicted through the computational difference algorithm and COX regression analysis. As a result, 7 genes, including HSPA4, S100A10, FABP6, CACYBP, HDAC1, FCGR2B and SHC1, were retrieved to construct a predictive model associated with the overall survival (OS) of LIHC patients. Typically, the as-constructed model performed moderately in predicting prognosis, which was also correlated with tumor grade. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that the genes of high-risk group were actively involved in mRNA binding and the spliceosome pathway. Intriguingly, the prognostic index established based on IRGs reflected infiltration by multiple types of immunocytes. Our findings screen several IRGs with clinical significance, reveal the drivers of immune repertoire, and illustrate the importance of a personalized, IRG-based immune signature in LIHC recognition, surveillance, and prognosis prediction.