About me
Professor of Gastroenterology specialising in Hepatocellular Cancer at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge, as of 11 April 2022.
Primary position: Consultant at Karolinska University Hospital.
Research description
Per Stål is a gastroenterologist specialising in hepatology and works clinically with patients suffering from chronic liver disease. At present, the main focus of his research is improved methods to discover primary liver (hepatocellular) cancer at an early stage in patients with cirrhosis of the liver. These patients are at a high risk of liver cancer development, and today’s screening with ultrasound has its shortcomings. Survival when the tumour is not diagnosed at an early stage is low.
Per Stål leads a recently started national study in which blood samples will be collected from patients with cirrhosis to validate if candidate proteins in the blood can be used as biomarkers of hepatocellular cancer. He is also part of a collaboration studying if micro-RNA in plasma and tumour RNA from vesicles can be used for the same purpose.
In another collaboration with preclinical researchers, Per Stål is studying how immunotherapy for liver cancer activates the immune system and why this activation sometimes fails to happen.