根治性肝切除联合索拉非尼治疗肝细胞癌的研究进展

根治性肝切除仍然是肝细胞癌(hepatocellularcarcinoma,HCC)的主要治疗手段,但术后转移复发导致肝切除的疗效进入瓶颈期.探索术后复发的治疗措施是有效延长患者生存时间的重要课题.目前,以经皮肝动脉化疗栓塞为代表的多种治疗措施已在临床广泛开展,但尚缺乏大规模、多中心随机对照临床试验的循证医学证据.分子靶向药物索拉非尼的出现为改善HCC预后开辟了新局面,对于已接受过根治性肝切除治疗的HCC患者,索拉非尼可能是一种有效的辅助治疗方法,值得深入探索.     

Risk factors for immediate post-operative fatal recurrence after curative resection of hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM:To investigate the clinicopathological riskfactors for immediate post-operative fatal recurrenceof hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC),which may havepractical implication and contribute to establishinghigh risk patients for pre-or post-operative preventivemeasures against HCC recurrence.METHODS:From June 1994 to May 2004,269 patientswho received curative resection for HCC were reviewed.Of these patients,those who demonstrated diffuse intra-hepatic or multiple systemic recurrent lesions within 6mo after surgery were investigated (fatal recurrencegroup).The remaining patients were designated as thecontrol group,and the two groups were compared forclinicopathologic risk factors.RESULTS:Among the 269 patients reviewed,30patients were enrolled in the fatal recurrence group.Among the latter,20 patients showed diffuse intra-hepatic recurrence type and 10 showed multiple systemicrecurrence type.Multivariate analysis between the fatalrecurrence group and control group showed that pre-operative serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level wasgreater than 1000 μg/L (P=0.02; odds ratio=2.98),tumor size greater than 6.5 cm (P=0.03; OR=2.98),and presence of microvascular invasion (P=0.01;OR=4.89) were the risk factors in the fatal recurrencegroup.The 48.1% of the patients who had all the threerisk factors and the 22% of those who had two riskfactors experienced fatal recurrence within 6 mo aftersurgery.CONCLUSION:Three distinct risk factors for immediatepost-operative fatal recurrence of HCC after curativeresection are pre-operative serum AFP level>1000 μg/L, tumor size>6.5 cm,and microvascular invasion.Thehigh risk patients with two or more risk factors should bethe candidates for various adjuvant clinical trials.     

Liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma using a microwave tissue coagulator: Experience of 1118 cases

AIM: To present our extensive experience of hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma using a microwave tissue coagulator to demonstrate the effectiveness of this device.METHODS: A total of 1118 cases (1990-2013) were reviewed, with an emphasis on intraoperative blood loss, postoperative bile leakage and fluid/abscess formation, and adaptability to anatomical resection and hepatectomy with hilar dissection.RESULTS: The median intraoperative blood loss was 250 mL; postoperative bile leakage and fluid/abscess formation were seen in 3.0% and 3.3% of cases, respectively. Anatomical resection was performed in 275 cases, including 103 cases of hilar dissection that required application of microwave coagulation near the hepatic hilum. There was no clinically relevant biliary tract stricture or any vascular problems due to heat injury. Regarding the influence of cirrhosis on intraoperative blood loss, no significant difference was seen between cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic patients (P = 0.38), although cirrhotic patients tended to have smaller tumors and underwent less invasive operations.CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated outcomes of an extensive experience of hepatectomy using heat coagulative necrosis by microwave tissue coagulator.     

Role of surgical resection for multiple hepatocellular carcinomas

AIM:To clarify the role of surgical resection for multiple hepatocellular carcinomas(HCCs)compared to transarterial chemoembolization(TACE)and liver transplantation(LT). METHODS:Among the HCC patients who were managed at Yonsei University Health System between January 2003 and December 2008,160 patients who met the following criteria were retrospectively enrolled:(1) two or three radiologically diagnosed HCCs;(2)no radiologic vascular invasion;(3)Child-Pugh class A;(4) main tumor smaller than 5 cm in diameter;and(5) platelet count greater than 50 000/mm3.Long-term outcomes were compared among the following three treatment modalities:surgical resection or combined radiofrequency ablation(RFA)(n=36),TACE(n=107), and LT(n=17).The survival curves were computed using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with a log-rank test.To identify the patients who gained a survival benefit from surgical resection,we also investigated prognostic factors for survival following surgical resection.Multivariate analyses of the prognostic factors for survival were performed using the Cox proportional hazard model. RESULTS:The overall survival(OS)rate was significantly higher in the surgical resection group than in the TACE group(48.1%vs 28.9%at 5 years,P<0.005). LT had the best OS rate,which was better than that of the surgical resection group,although the difference was not statistically significant(80.2%vs 48.1%at 5 years,P=0.447).The disease-free survival rates were also significantly higher in the LT group than in the surgical resection group(88.2%vs 11.2%at 5 years, P<0.001).Liver cirrhosis was the only significant prognostic factor for poor OS after surgical resection. Clinical liver cirrhosis rates were 55.6%(20/36)in the resection group and 93.5%(100/107)in the TACE group.There were 19 major and 17 minor resections. En bloc resection was performed in 23 patients,multisite resection was performed in 5 patients,and combined resection with RFA was performed in 8 patients. In the TACE group,only 34 patients(31.8%)were record     

Meta-analysis of laparoscopic vs open liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM: To conduct a meta-analysis to determine the safety and efficacy of laparoscopic liver resection (LLR) and open liver resection (OLR) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).METHODS: PubMed (Medline), EMBASE and Science Citation Index Expanded and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials in the Cochrane Library were searched systematically to identify relevant comparative studies reporting outcomes for both LLR and OLR for HCC between January 1992 and February 2012. Two authors independently assessed the trials for inclusion and extracted the data. Meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager Version 5.0 software (The Cochrane Collaboration, Oxford, United Kingdom). Pooled odds ratios (OR) or weighted mean differences (WMD) with 95%CI were calculated using either fixed effects (Mantel-Haenszel method) or random effects models (DerSimonian and Laird method). Evaluated endpoints were operative outcomes (operation time, intraoperative blood loss, blood transfusion requirement), postoperative outcomes (liver failure, cirrhotic decompensation/ascites, bile leakage, postoperative bleeding, pulmonary complications, intraabdominal abscess, mortality, hospital stay and oncologic outcomes (positive resection margins and tumor recurrence).RESULTS: Fifteen eligible non-randomized studies were identified, out of which, 9 high-quality studies involving 550 patients were included, with 234 patients in the LLR group and 316 patients in the OLR group. LLR was associated with significantly lower intraoperative blood loss, based on six studies with 333 patients [WMD: -129.48 mL; 95%CI: -224.76-(-34.21) mL; P = 0.008]. Seven studies involving 416 patients were included to assess blood transfusion requirement between the two groups. The LLR group had lower blood transfusion requirement (OR: 0.49; 95%CI: 0.26-0.91; P = 0.02). While analyzing hospital stay, six studies with 333 patients were included. Patients in the LLR group were found to have shorter hospital stay [WMD: -3.19 d; 95%CI: -4.09-(-2.28) d; P < 0.00001] than their OLR counterpart. Seven studies including 416 patients were pooled together to estimate the odds of developing postoperative ascites in the patient groups. The LLR group appeared to have a lower incidence of postoperative ascites (OR: 0.32; 95%CI: 0.16-0.61; P = 0.0006) as compared with OLR patients. Similarly, fewer patients had liver failure in the LLR group than in the OLR group (OR: 0.15; 95%CI: 0.02-0.95; P = 0.04). However, no significant differences were found between the two approaches with regards to operation time [WMD: 4.69 min; 95%CI: -22.62-32 min; P = 0.74], bile leakage (OR: 0.55; 95%CI: 0.10-3.12; P = 0.50), postoperative bleeding (OR: 0.54; 95%CI: 0.20-1.45; P = 0.22), pulmonary complications (OR: 0.43; 95%CI: 0.18-1.04; P = 0.06), intra-abdominal abscesses (OR: 0.21; 95%CI: 0.01-4.53; P = 0.32), mortality (OR: 0.46; 95%CI: 0.14-1.51; P = 0.20), presence of positive resection margins (OR: 0.59; 95%CI: 0.21-1.62; P = 0.31) and tumor recurrence (OR: 0.95; 95%CI: 0.62-1.46; P = 0.81).CONCLUSION: LLR appears to be a safe and feasible option for resection of HCC in selected patients based on current evidence. However, further appropriately designed randomized controlled trials should be undertaken to ascertain these findings.     

Long-term survivors after hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma

Sixteen long-term (more than 5 years) survivors after hepatic resection performed for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from 1970 to 1988, were reviewed. The mean age of the patients was 51 years. There were 11 males and 5 females. HBs antigen was positive in 9 patients. Liver cirrhosis was associated with 11 patients but its severity was designated as Child's A in all patients except one. The mean tumour diameter was 2.8 cm and was relatively small. At the first operation, limited procedures (i.e. partial hepatectomy and subsegmentectomy) were employed in 87.5% of patients. A large percentage of tumours were located in S5 and S6 segments. A recurrence of HCC occurred in 9 patients after the first resection. A second resection was carried out in 7 patients, in 2 of which a third resection was done. Transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) was performed on 4 patients. These results show that, in addition to detection of small tumours and early resection, repeated operation or TAE for treatment of recurrent HCC was important in achieving long-term survival after HCC resection.     

Predictors and clinical outcomes for spontaneous rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM:To determine the risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) rupture,and report the management and long-term survival results of patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC.METHODS:Among 4209 patients with HCC who were diagnosed at Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital from April 2002 to November 2006,200(4.8%) patients with ruptured HCC(case group) were studied retrospectively in term of their clinical characteristics and prognostic factors.The one-stage therapeutic approach to manage ruptured HCC consisted of initial management by conservative treatment,transarterial embolization(TACE) or hepatic resection.Results of various treatments in the case group were evaluated and compared with the control group(202 patients) without ruptured HCC during the same study period.Continuous data were expressed as mean ± SD or me-dian(range) where appropriate and compared using the unpaired t test.Categorical variables were compared using the Chi-square test with Yates correction or the Fisher exact test where appropriate.The overall survival rate in each group was determined using the Kaplan-Meier method and a log-rank test.RESULTS:Compared with the control group,more patients in the case group had underlying diseases of hypertension(7.5% vs 3.0%,P =0.041) and liver cirrhosis(87.5% vs 56.4%,P 0.001),tumor size 5 cm(83.0% vs 57.4%,P 0.001),tumor protrusion from the liver surface(66.0% vs 44.6%,P 0.001),vascular thrombus(30.5% vs 8.9%,P 0.001) and extrahepatic invasion(36.5% vs 12.4%,P 0.001).On multivariate logistic regression analysis,underlying diseases of hypertension(P = 0.002) and liver cirrhosis(P 0.001),tumor size 5 cm(P 0.001),vascular thrombus(P = 0.002) and extrahepatic invasion(P 0.001) were predictive for spontaneous rupture of HCC.Among the 200 patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC,105 patients underwent hepatic resection,33 received TACE,and 62 were managed with conservative treatment.The median survival time(MST) of all patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC was 6 mo(range,1-72 mo),and the overall survival at 1,3 and 5 years were 32.5%,10% and 4%,respectively.The MST was 12 mo(range,1-72 mo) in the surgical group,4 mo(range,1-30 mo) in the TACE group and 1 mo(range,1-19 mo) in the conservative group.Ninety-eight patients in the control group underwent hepatic resection,and the MST and median diseasefree survival time were 46 mo(range,6-93 mo) and 23 mo(range,3-39 mo) respectively,which were much longer than that of patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC undergoing hepatic resection(P 0.001).The 1-,3-,and 5-year overall survival rates and the 1-,3-and 5-year disease-free survival rates in patients with ruptured HCC undergoing hepatectomy were 57.1%,19.0% and 7.6%,27.6%,14.3% and 3.8%,respectively,compared with those of 77.1%,59.8% and 41.2%,57.1%,40.6% and 32.9% in 98 patients with-CONCLUSION:Prolonged survival can be achieved in selected patients undergoing one-stage hepatectomy,although the survival results were inferior to those of the patients without ruptured HCC.     

Comparative study and systematic review of laparoscopic liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM: To compare the surgical outcomes between laparoscopic liver resection (LLR) and open liver resection (OLR) as a curative treatment in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).METHODS: A PubMed database search was performed systematically to identify comparative studies of LLR vs OLR for HCC from 2000 to 2014. An extensive text word search was conducted, using combinations of search headings such as “laparoscopy”, “hepatectomy”, and “hepatocellular carcinoma”. A comparative study was also performed in our institution where we analysed surgical outcomes of 152 patients who underwent liver resection between January 2005 to December 2012, of which 42 underwent laparoscopic or hand-assisted laparoscopic resection and 110 underwent open resection.RESULTS: Analysis of our own series and a review of 17 high-quality studies showed that LLR was superior to OLR in terms of short-term outcomes, as patients in the laparoscopic arm were found to have less intraoperative blood loss, less blood transfusions, and a shorter length of hospital stay. In our own series, both LLR and OLR groups were found to have similar overall survival (OS) rates, but disease-free survival (DFS) rates were higher in the laparoscopic arm.CONCLUSION: LLR is associated with better short-term outcomes compared to OLR as a curative treatment for HCC. Long-term oncologic outcomes with regards to OS and DFS rates were found to be comparable in both groups. LLR is hence a safe and viable option for curative resection of HCC.     

艾滋病合并肝细胞癌与非艾滋病肝细胞癌患者肝切除术后并发症及肝功能的比较分析

目的通过对比艾滋病合并肝细胞癌与非艾滋病肝细胞癌患者肝切除术后并发症及肝功能,分析根治性肝切除术治疗艾滋病合并肝细胞癌的可行性,探讨围手术期死亡率增高的原因。 方法回顾性分析在广州医科大学附属市八医院接受根治性肝切除术的26例艾滋病合并肝细胞癌患者的临床资料,与同期接受根治性肝切除术的75例非艾滋病肝细胞癌患者对比。根据是否合并艾滋病分为艾滋病合并肝细胞癌组即HIV+组与非艾滋病肝细胞癌组即HIV-组。比较两组的并发症、肝功能及围手术期死亡率。计量资料用（±s）表示,组间比较用t检验。计数资料以病例数[n (%)]表示,组间比较采用χ²检验。 结果HIV+组与HIV-组手术方式选择差异无统计学意义（P=0.071）。两组间感染性并发症（P=0.259）、非感染性并发症（P=0.357）发生率差异无统计学意义。两组间术前、术后1 d、3 d、7 d谷丙转氨酶（ALT）、白蛋白、总胆红差异无统计学意义,术前天冬氨酸转氨酶（AST）差异有统计学意义（P<0.001）,HIV+组65.4%患者术前AST≥40 U/L。单因素分析术前AST、术后3 d总胆红素、术后7 d白蛋白是预后的影响因素。围手术期3例患者死亡,均为HIV+患者,其中肝功能衰竭死亡2例,出血死亡1例;两组围手术期死亡率差异有统计学意义（P=0.016）。 结论对艾滋病合并肝细胞癌患者行根治性肝切除术是可行的,但更易发生围手术期死亡,肝功能衰竭是围手术期死亡的主要原因,对其肝切除术应更加严格的选择患者。     

Safety of hepatectomy for elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

The number of elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been increasing. Characteristics of elderly HCC patients are a higher proportion of females, a lower rate of positive hepatitis B surface antigen, and a higher rate of positive hepatitis C antibodies. Careful patient selection is vital for performing hepatectomy safely in elderly HCC patients. Treatment strategy should be decided by not only considering tumor stage and hepatic functional reserve, but also physiological status, including comorbid disease. Various assessment tools have been applied to predict the risk of hepatectomy. The reported mortality and morbidity rates after hepatectomy in elderly HCC patients ranged from 0% to 42.9% and from 9% to 51%, respectively. Overall survival rate after hepatectomy in elderly HCC patients at 5 years ranged from 26% to 75.9%. Both short-term and long-term results after hepatectomy for strictly selected elderly HCC patients are almost the same as those for younger patients. However, considering physiological characteristics and the high prevalence of comorbid disease in elderly patients, it is important to assess patients more meticulously and to select them strictly if scheduled to undergo major hepatectomy.     

Hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma in the era of liver transplantation

The aim of management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is to improve the prognosis of the patients by radical resection and preserve remnant liver function. Although liver transplantation is associated with a lower tumor recurrence rate, this benefit is counteracted by long-term complications. Therefore, hepatectomy could be the first choice of treatment in selected patients with HCC. However, the higher frequency of tumor recurrence and the lower rate of resectability after hepatectomy for HCC led to an unsatisfactory prognosis. New strategies are required to improve the long-term outcome of HCC after hepatectomy. In this paper, we introduce some strategies to increase the low rate of resectability and reduce the high rate of tumor recurrence. Some aggressive treatments for tumor recurrence to extend long-term survival are also involved. We believe that hepatectomy combined with other therapies, such as portal vein embolization, transarterial chemoembolization, radioembolization, antiviral treatment, radiofrequency ablation and salvage transplantation, is a promising treatment modality for HCC and may improve survival greatly.     

Preoperative predictors of short-term survival after hepatectomy for multinodular hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM: To investigate preoperative factors associated with poor short-term outcome after resection for multinodular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to assess the contraindication of patients for surgery.METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 162 multinodular HCC patients with Child-Pugh A liver function who underwent surgical resection. The prognostic significance of preoperative factors was investigated by univariate analysis using the log-rank test and by multivariate analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model. Each independent risk factor was then assigned points to construct a scoring model to evaluate the indication for surgical intervention. A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was constructed to assess the predictive ability of this system.RESULTS: The median overall survival was 38.3 mo (range: 3-80 mo), while the median disease-free survival was 18.6 mo (range: 1-79 mo). The 1-year mortality was 14%. Independent prognostic risk factors of 1-year death included prealbumin < 170 mg/L [hazard ratio (HR): 5.531, P < 0.001], alkaline phosphatase > 129 U/L (HR: 3.252, P = 0.005), α fetoprotein > 20 μg/L (HR: 7.477, P = 0.011), total tumor size > 8 cm (HR: 10.543; P < 0.001), platelet count < 100 × 10⁹/L (HR: 9.937, P < 0.001), and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase > 64 U/L (HR: 3.791, P < 0.001). The scoring model had a strong ability to predict 1-year survival (area under ROC: 0.925, P < 0.001). Patients with a score ≥ 5 had significantly poorer short-term outcome than those with a score < 5 (1-year mortality: 62% vs 5%, P < 0.001; 1-year recurrence rate: 86% vs 33%, P < 0.001). Patients with score ≥ 5 had greater possibility of microvascular invasion (P < 0.001), poor tumor differentiation (P = 0.003), liver cirrhosis with small nodules (P < 0.001), and intraoperative blood transfusion (P = 0.010).CONCLUSION: A composite preoperative scoring model can be used as an indication of prognosis of HCC patients after surgical resection. Resection should be considered with caution in patients with a score ≥ 5, which indicates a contraindication for surgery.     

Adjuvant transarterial chemoembolization after curative resection of hepatocellular carcinoma: Propensity score analysis

AIM: To compare survival and recurrence in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who did or did not receive adjuvant transarterial chemoembolization (TACE).METHODS: A consecutive sample of 229 patients who underwent curative resection between March 2007 and March 2010 in our hospital was included. Of these 229 patients, 91 (39.7%) underwent curative resection followed by adjuvant TACE and 138 (60.3%) underwent curative resection alone. In order to minimize confounds due to baseline differences between the two patient groups, comparisons were conducted between propensity score-matched patients. Survival data and recurrence rates were compared using the Kaplan-Meier method. Independent predictors of overall survival and recurrence were identified using Cox proportional hazard regression.RESULTS: Among 61 pairs of propensity score-matched patients, the 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival rates were 95.1%, 86.7%, and 76.4% in the TACE group and 86.9%, 78.5%, and 73.2% in the control group, respectively. At the same time, the TACE and control groups also showed similar recurrence rates at 1 year (13.4% vs 24.8%), 2 years (30.6% vs 32.1%), and 3 years (40.1% vs 34.0%). Multivariate Cox regression identified serum alpha-fetoprotein level ≥ 400 ng/mL and tumor size > 5 cm as independent risk factors of mortality (P < 0.05).CONCLUSION: As postoperative adjuvant TACE does not improve overall survival or reduce recurrence in HCC patients, further study is needed to clarify its clinical benefit.     

Staging systems for predicting survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after surgery

AIM: To compare the staging systems for stratifying and predicting the prognosis of patients with hepatocel-lular carcinoma (HCC) after partial hepatectomy (PH). METHODS: Clinical data about 438 HCC patients who underwent PH from January 1991 to December 2004 at our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Tumor stage was evaluated following the Chinese tumor node me-tastasis (TNM) and barcelona clinic liver cancer (BCLC) staging systems, respectively. Survival curves for the HCC patients were plotted using ...     

基于SEER数据的原发性小肝癌肝切除术后生存率列线图模型的构建及验证

目的基于SEER数据和中国数据建立并验证原发性小肝癌肝切除术后总生存率列线图模型。方法提取2004年—2015年美国国立癌症研究所SEER数据库所登记的原发性小肝癌接受肝切除术治疗的1809例患者资料作为建模组;收集2010年—2017年在川北医学院附属医院接受肝切除术治疗的小肝癌患者158例为验证组。采用单因素Cox风险回归、lasso回归、多因素Cox风险回归分析小肝癌患者肝切除术后OS的影响因素。根据OS的独立影响因素构建列线图模型,利用一致性指数(C-index)、绘制校准曲线及ROC曲线检验模型的预测能力。利用Kaplan-Meier生存分析和log-rank检验分析高、低风险组间的生存差异。结果多因素Cox风险回归分析发现性别(HR=1.22, 95%CI:1.05～1.41,P=0.010)、Seer分期(HR=1.51,95%CI:1.23～1.85,P<0.001;HR=10.31,95%CI:2.53～42.04,P=0.001)、肿瘤直径(HR=1.22,95%CI:1.06～1.39,P=0.004)、脉管侵犯或转移(HR=1.43,95%CI:1.24～...     

乙型肝炎相关性肝癌术后抗病毒治疗的临床意义

目的探讨抗病毒治疗对HBV相关性肝癌术后的影响。方法回顾性分析113例HBV相关性肝癌并行根治性切除患者的病例资料,术后接受抗病毒治疗的为治疗组44例,单纯手术切除的为对照组69例。比较两组1、3、5年无瘤生存率及肝癌复发时肝功能的差异。结果治疗组和对照组的1、3、5年无瘤生存率分别为81.8%、38.6%、26.7%和73.9%、26.5%、13.6%,两组比较差异有统计学意义(P=0.038)。至随访终点,共有88例肝癌复发,治疗组(n=32)相对于对照组(n=56)的ALT、Child-Pugh评分、HBV DNA在肝癌复发时明显降低,分别为[(38.2±20.9)U/L比(48.0±20.3)U/L,P=0.046]、[(5.41±0.76)lg拷贝/mL比(6.14±1.55)lg拷贝/mL,P=0.014]、[2.70 lg拷贝/mL比(5.23±1.49)lg拷贝/mL,P0.01]。结论抗病毒治疗能够改善HBV相关性肝癌切除术后的无瘤生存率,并有助于肝癌患者术后残肝功能的恢复,为肝癌复发的综合治疗创造条件。     

Adjuvant sorafenib after heptectomy for Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer-stage C hepatocellular carcinoma patients

AIM: To investigate the efficacy and safety of adjuvant sorafenib after curative resection for patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC)-stage C hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).METHODS: Thirty-four HCC patients, classified as BCLC-stage C, received adjuvant sorafenib for high-risk of tumor recurrence after curative hepatectomy at a tertiary care university hospital. The study group was compared with a case-matched control group of 68 patients who received curative hepatectomy for HCC during the study period in a 1:2 ratio.RESULTS: The tumor recurrence rate was markedly lower in the sorafenib group (15/34, 44.1%) than in the control group (51/68, 75%, P = 0.002). The median disease-free survival was 12 mo in the study group and 10 mo in the control group. Tumor number more than 3, macrovascular invasion, hilar lymph nodes metastasis, and treatment with sorafenib were significant factors of disease-free survival by univariate analysis. Tumor number more than 3 and treatment with sorafenib were significant risk factors of disease-free survival by multivariate analysis in the Cox proportional hazards model. The disease-free survival and cumulative overall survival in the study group were significantly better than in the control group (P = 0.034 and 0.016, respectively).CONCLUSION: Our study verifies the potential benefit and safety of adjuvant sorafenib for both decreasing HCC recurrence and extending disease-free and overall survival rates for patients with BCLC-stage C HCC after curative resection.     

Poor prognosis for hepatocellular carcinoma with transarterial chemoembolization pre-transplantation:Retrospective analysis

AIM: To investigate whether transarterial chemoembolization(TACE) before liver transplantation(LT) improves long-term survival in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) patients.METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted among 204 patients with HCC who received LT from January 2002 to December 2010 in PLA General Hospital. Among them, 88 patients received TACE before LT. Prognostic factors of serum α-fetoprotein(AFP), intraoperative blood loss, intraoperative blood transfusion, disease-free survival time, survival time with tumor, number of tumor nodules, tumor size, tumor number, presence of blood vessels and bile duct invasion, lymph node metastasis, degree of tumor differentiation, and preoperative liver function were determined in accordance with the Child-TurcottePugh(Child) classification and model for end-stage liver disease. We also determined time of TACE before transplant surgery and tumor recurrence and metastasis according to different organs. Cumulative survival rate and disease-free survival rate curves were prepared using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the logrank and χ2 tests were used for comparisons.RESULTS: In patients with and without TACE before LT, the 1, 3 and 5-year cumulative survival rate was 70.5% ± 4.9% vs 91.4% ± 2.6%, 53.3% ± 6.0% vs 83.1% ± 3.9%, and 46.2% ± 7.0% vs 80.8% ± 4.5%, respectively. The median survival time of patients with and without TACE was 51.857 ± 5.042 mo vs 80.930 ± 3.308 mo(χ2 = 22.547, P < 0.001, P < 0.05). The 1, 3 and 5-year disease-free survival rates for patients with and without TACE before LT were 62.3% ± 5.2% vs98.9% ± 3.0%, 48.7% ± 6.7% vs 82.1% ± 4.1%, and 48.7% ± 6.7% vs 82.1% ± 4.1%, respectively. The median survival time of patients with and without TACE before LT was 50.386 ± 4.901 mo vs 80.281 ± 3.216 mo(χ2 = 22.063, P < 0.001, P < 0.05). TACE before LT can easily lead to pulmonary or distant metastasis of the primary tumor. Although there was no significant difference between the two groups, the chance of metastasis of the primary tumor in the group with TACE was significantly higher than that of the group without TACE.CONCLUSION: TACE pre-LT for HCC patients increased the chances of pulmonary or distant metastasis of the primary tumor, thus reducing the long-term survival rate.     

Impact of obesity on the surgical outcome following repeat hepatic resection in Japanese patients with recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM： To evaluate the impact of obesity on the postoperative outcome after hepatic resection in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. METHODS： Data from 328 consecutive patients with primary HCC and 60 patients with recurrent HCC were studied. We compared the surgical outcomes between the non-obese group （body mass index： BMI 〈 25 kg/m2） and the obese group （BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2）. RESULTS： Following curative hepatectomy in patients with primary HCC, the incidence of postoperative complications and the long-term prognosis in the nonobese group （n = 240） were comparable to those in the obese group （n = 88）. Among patients with recurrent HCC, the incidence of postoperative complications after repeat hepatectomy was not significantly different between the non-obese group （n = 44） and the obese group （n = 16）. However, patients in the obese group showed a significantly poorer long-term prognosis than those in the non-obese group （P 〈 0.05, five-yearsurvival rate; 51.9% and 92.0%, respectively）. CONCLUSION： Obesity alone may not have an adverse effect on the surgical outcomes of patients with primary HCC. However, greater caution seems to be required when planning a repeat hepatectomy for obese patients with recurrent HCC.