d

Despite advancements in the management of cirrhosis, the prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is on the rise [1]. The prevalence of HCC varies geographically and currently HCC is the fifth most common cancer representing almost 6 % of all newly diagnosed cancers globally [2]. It is also one of the common causes of mortality in patients with cirrhosis. Up to 80 % of HCC has been reported from South-East Asia and Africa [2,3]. Hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) are the most im-portant risk factors predisposing a patient to having HCC, particularly in Asia [4,5]. However, several patients develop HCC due to the causes other than hepatitis B and C. Therefore, patients who have negative serological markers for hepatitis B and C grouped as viral marker negative or non-B non-C hepatocellular carcinoma (NBNC-HCC). The reported prevalence of NBNC-HC