Characteristics at presentation and outcome of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the elderly. A study of the Cancer of the Liver Italian Program (CLIP)

PURPOSE: To describe the characteristics at presentation and the outcome of elderly patients (> or =70 years old) with HCC, a retrospective analysis using a CLIP database was performed. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The database included 650 patients. Chi2-test, logistic and Cox model were applied. RESULTS: Baseline characteristics and stage were similarly among elderly (n=158) and non-elderly (n=492) patients. More elderly patients did not receive any local treatment (56% versus 38%, p<0.0001). Age and CLIP score were independently predictive of the odds of locoregional treatment. Prognosis was worse for elderly patients with a hazard ratio of death of 1.49 (95% CI 1.20-1.86) at multivariable analysis. The survival difference disappeared when patients were compared within each treatment group, suggesting a close link between undertreatment and shorter survival. CONCLUSION: Elderly patients with HCC have a worse prognosis compared to non-elderly ones. Such difference seems the consequence of undertreatment.