Use of Gender, Age, Alfa-fetoprotein (AFP), and Des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin (PIVKA-II) or GAAD Score in Addition to Ultrasound for Surveillance of People At-risk for Developing Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Asia in Order to Detect Early Liver Cancer

HCC surveillance is currently limited by underutilization and the suboptimal performance of AFP. This prospective, single-arm study investigates whether the GAAD score (Gender, Age, AFP, and PIVKA-II) enhances HCC detection when added to standard-of-care surveillance. High-risk patients will undergo US plus GAAD score testing every six months for two years. The primary analysis compares the relative true positive rate (rTPR) and relative false positive rate (rFPR) of surveillance modalities (US, AFP, GAAD) against combined strategies (US+AFP; US+GAAD), utilizing a 2.57 GAAD cut-off. Secondary endpoints include longitudinal biomarker kinetics, early-stage HCC detection rates, and the impact on downstream imaging (CT/MRI) volume. Ultimately, this study seeks to define the role of GAAD as a surveillance adjunct and inform future clinical guidelines for biomarker-enhanced HCC screening.