Focusing on the past, present, and future of hepatology

Abstract

The past five years have borne witness to remarkable progress in almost all areas of hepatology, including: improved understanding of the molecular pathophysiology of developmental, infectious, inflammatory, metabolic and neoplastic liver diseases; the introduction of non-invasive diagnostic tools for fibrosis, and the discovery of direct acting anti-viral agents for hepatitis C, among many others [1–10]. These advances have resulted in part from successful efforts to link basic science and clinical research, as reviewed in a special conference on translational research organized by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) in Lyon, France in November 2013 [11]. While a comprehensive description of progress in the science and practice of hepatology in these 5 years is beyond the scope of this commentary, we wish to use this final FOCUS piece to highlight some of the most meaningful advances in our field, and to glimpse into the future of our discipline.