Kazuki Takeishi1, Takashi Maeda2, Eiji Tsujita2, Yo-Ichi Yamashita3, Noboru Harada2, Shinji Itoh4, Norifumi Harimoto4, Toru Ikegami4, Tomoharu Yoshizumi4, Ken Shirabe4, Yoshihiko Maehara4. 1. Department of Surgery and Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan Department of Surgery, Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital and Atomic Bomb Survivors Hospital, Hiroshima, Japan ktake@surg2.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp. 2. Department of Surgery, Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital and Atomic Bomb Survivors Hospital, Hiroshima, Japan. 3. Department of Surgery and Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan Department of Surgery, Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital and Atomic Bomb Survivors Hospital, Hiroshima, Japan. 4. Department of Surgery and Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIM: Survival of patients with multiple recurrences (MR) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is very poor as recurrent tumors are usually aggressive and not amenable to curative resection. The present study aimed to investigate retrospectively predictors of intrahepatic MR of HCC after hepatectomy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We reviewed 416 patients who underwent hepatectomy and developed intrahepatic recurrence during the follow-up period. According to the recurrence pattern, the patients were divided into two groups: 83 who had four or more recurrent lesions in the remnant liver were defined as the MR group and the others who constituted the control group. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis showed that micro-intrahepatic metastasis, α-fetoprotein and tumor size were independent risk factors for MR after hepatectomy. The combination of these three independent factors was significantly associated with MR. The recurrence rates within 1 year after hepatectomy of MR and control groups were 53.0% and 27.6%, respectively (p=0.0001). The 5-year overall survival rate of the MR group was 39%, which was significantly less than that of the control group (68%, p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: MR of HCC was associated with an earlier recurrence and poorer survival after hepatectomy. The combination of three independent factors for MR might help predict MR occurrence during the follow-up period. Copyright
BACKGROUND/AIM: Survival of patients with multiple recurrences (MR) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is very poor as recurrent tumors are usually aggressive and not amenable to curative resection. The present study aimed to investigate retrospectively predictors of intrahepatic MR of HCC after hepatectomy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We reviewed 416 patients who underwent hepatectomy and developed intrahepatic recurrence during the follow-up period. According to the recurrence pattern, the patients were divided into two groups: 83 who had four or more recurrent lesions in the remnant liver were defined as the MR group and the others who constituted the control group. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis showed that micro-intrahepatic metastasis, α-fetoprotein and tumor size were independent risk factors for MR after hepatectomy. The combination of these three independent factors was significantly associated with MR. The recurrence rates within 1 year after hepatectomy of MR and control groups were 53.0% and 27.6%, respectively (p=0.0001). The 5-year overall survival rate of the MR group was 39%, which was significantly less than that of the control group (68%, p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: MR of HCC was associated with an earlier recurrence and poorer survival after hepatectomy. The combination of three independent factors for MR might help predict MR occurrence during the follow-up period. Copyright