BACKGROUND/AIMS: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is one of the most frequently applied curative treatments in patients with a single small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the clinical significance of and risk factors for early massive recurrence after RFA—a dreadful event limiting further curative treatment—have not been fully evaluated. METHODS: In total, 438 patients with a single HCC of size ≤3 cm who underwent percutaneous RFA as an initial treatment between 2006 and 2009 were included. Baseline patient characteristics, overall survival, predictive factors, and recurrence after RFA were evaluated. In addition, the incidence, impact on survival, and predictive factors of early massive recurrence, and initial recurrence beyond the Milan criteria within 2 years were also investigated. RESULTS: During the median follow-up of 68.4 months, recurrent HCC was confirmed in 302 (68.9%) patients, with early massive recurrence in 27 patients (6.2%). The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival rates were 95.4%, 84.7%, and 81.8%, respectively, in patients with no recurrence, 99.6%, 86.4%, and 70.1% in patients with recurrence within the Milan criteria or late recurrence, and 92.6%, 46.5%, and 0.05% in patients with early massive recurrence. Multivariable analysis identified older age, Child-Pugh score B or C, and early massive recurrence as predictive of poor overall survival. A tumor size of ≥2 cm and tumor location adjacent to the colon were independent risk factors predictive of early massive recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: Early massive recurrence is independently predictive of poor overall survival after RFA in patients with a single small HCC. Tumors sized ≥2 cm and located adjacent to the colon appear to be independent risk factors for early massive recurrence.
Aged ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Catheter Ablation ; Female ; Hepatitis B/complications ; Hepatitis C/complications ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Neoplasm Staging ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Several studies have suggested that surgical resection (SR) can provide a survival benefit over transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at the intermediate stage according to the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) staging system. However, the criteria for SR remain to be determined. This study compared the long-term outcome of intermediate-stage HCC patients treated by either TACE or SR as a primary treatment modality, with the aim of identifying the patient subgroup that gained a survival benefit by either modality. METHODS: In total, 277 BCLC intermediate-stage HCC patients treated by either TACE (N=225) or SR (N=52) were analyzed. RESULTS: The overall median survival time was significantly better for SR than TACE (61 vs. 30 months, P=0.002). Decision-tree analysis divided patients into seven nodes based on tumor size and number, serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level, and Child-Pugh score, and these were then simplified into four subgroups (B1-B4) based on similarities in the overall hazard rate. SR provided a significant survival benefit in subgroup B2, characterized by ‘oligo' (2-4) nodules of intermediate size (5-10 cm) when the AFP levels was <400 ng/ml, or ‘oligo' (2-4) nodules of small to intermediate size (<10 cm) plus a Child-Pugh score of 5 when the AFP level was ≥400 ng/mL (median survival 73 vs. 28 months for SR vs. TACE respectively; P=0.014). The survival rate did not differ significantly between SR and TACE in the other subgroups (B1 and B3). CONCLUSIONS: SR provided a survival benefit over TACE in intermediate-stage HCC, especially for patients meeting certain criteria. Re-establishing the criteria for optimal treatment modalities in this stage of HCC is needed to improve survival rates.
Adult ; Aged ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Chemoembolization, Therapeutic ; Female ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome ; alpha-Fetoproteins/analysis

BACKGROUND: Surgical treatment for metastatic spine disease has been becoming more prominent with the help of technological advances and a few favorable reports on the surgery. In cases of this peculiar condition, it is necessary to establish the role of surgery and analyze the factors affecting survival. METHODS: From January 2011 to April 2015, 119 patients were surgically treated for metastatic spine lesions. To reduce the bias along the heterogeneous cancers, the primary cancer was confined to either the lung (n = 25) or the liver (n = 18). Forty-three patients (male, 32; female, 11; mean age, 57.5 years) who had undergone palliative surgery were enrolled in this study. Posterior decompression and fusion was performed in 30 patients (P group), and anteroposterior (AP) reconstruction was performed in 13 patients (AP group) for palliative surgery. Pre- and postoperative (3 months) pain (visual analogue scale, VAS), performance status (Karnofsky performance score), neurologic status (American Spinal Injury Association [ASIA] grade), and spinal instability neoplastic score (SINS) were compared. The survival period and related hazard factors were also assessed by Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analysis. RESULTS: Most patients experienced improvements in pain and performance status (12.3% +/- 17.2%) at 3 months postoperatively. In terms of neurologic recovery, 9 patients (20.9%) graded ASIA D experienced neurological improvement to ASIA E while the remainder was status quo. In an analysis according to operation type, there was no significant difference in patient demographics. At 12 months postoperatively, cumulative survival rates were 31.5% and 38.7% for the P group and the AP group, respectively (p > 0.05). Survival was not affected by the pre- and postoperative pain scale, Tokuhashi score, neurologic status, SINS, or operation type. Preoperative Karnofsky performance score (hazard ratio, 0.93; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.89 to 0.96) and improvement of performance status after surgery (hazard ratio, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.92 to 0.97) significantly affected survival after operation. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in surgical outcomes and survival rates between posterior and AP surgery for metastatic lesions resulting from lung and hepatocellular cancer. Preoperative Karnofsky score and improvement of performance status had a significant impact on the survival rate following surgical treatment for these metastatic spine lesions.
Aged ; Back Pain ; *Decompression, Surgical/adverse effects/methods/mortality ; Female ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Liver Neoplasms/*pathology ; Lung Neoplasms/*pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pain, Intractable ; Palliative Care/*methods ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; *Spinal Fusion/adverse effects/methods/mortality ; *Spinal Neoplasms/mortality/surgery ; Spine/*surgery

BACKGROUND: Metastatic pathological fractures of the spine are a major problem for cancer patients; however, there is no consensus on treatment strategy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate various treatment options by analyzing their patterns for metastatic pathological fractures of the spine. METHODS: In this study, 54 patients (male:female = 36:18) who were diagnosed with metastatic pathological fractures of spine were recruited. Demographic data, origin of cancer, type of treatment, and results were obtained from electronic medical records. Treatment options were divided into radiotherapy (RT), vertebroplasty (VP) or kyphoplasty (KP), operation (OP), and other treatments. Treatment results were defined as aggravation, no response, fair response, good response, and unknown. The survival time after detection of pathologic fractures was analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 62.3 years. Hepatocellular carcinoma was the most common cancer of primary origin (n = 9), followed by multiple myeloma (n = 8). RT was the most common primary choice of treatment (n = 29, 53.7%), followed by OP (n = 13, 24.1%), and VP or KP (n = 10, 18.5%). Only 13 of 29 RT cases and 7 of 13 OP cases demonstrated a fair or good response. The mean survival time following detection of pathological spinal fractures was 11.1 months for 29 patients, who died during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: RT was the most common primary choice of treatment for metastatic pathological fractures of the spine. However, the response rate was suboptimal. Although OP should be considered for the relief of mechanical back pain or neurologic symptoms, care should be taken in determining the surgical indication. VP or KP could be considered for short-term control of localized pain, although the number of cases was too small to confirm the conclusion. It is difficult to determine the superiority of the treatment modalities, hence, a common guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of metastatic pathological fractures of the spine is required.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/mortality/pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/mortality/pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multiple Myeloma/mortality/pathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Spinal Fractures/etiology/mortality/*radiotherapy/*surgery ; Spinal Neoplasms/*complications/secondary ; Spine ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo explore the significance of resection margin and tumor number on survival of patients with small liver cancer after hepatectomy.

METHODSWe collected 219 cases with small liver cancer undergoing hepatectomy in Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences between December 2003 to July 2013. The survival rates were compared by log-rank test between two resection margin groups (≥ 1 cm vs. <1 cm), different tumor number groups (single tumor vs. multiple tumors). We also performed a multifactor analysis by Cox model.

RESULTSThe 1-, 3-, 5- and 10- year overall survival rates were 95.9%, 85.3%, 67.8% and 53.3%, respectively, in all patients. The median survival time was 28 months in the group of <1 cm resection margin and 36 months in the group of ≥ 1 cm resection margin (P=0.249). The median survival time was 36 months in the group of single tumor and 26 months in the group of multiple tumors (P=0.448). The multifactor analysis also did not show significant effect of resection margin and tumor number on the patients' survival.

CONCLUSIONSFor small liver cancer, the resection margin of 1 cm might be advised. Increasing resection margin in further could probably not improve therapeutic effect. Standardized operation and combined treatment will decrease the negative influence of multiple tumors on overall survival.

Combined Modality Therapy ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Survival Rate ; Time Factors

OBJECTIVETo investigate the differences between clinicopathological features and prognosis of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) negative (AFP < 20 ng/ml) and positive (AFP ≥ 20 ng/ml) hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients.

METHODSClinicopathological data of 142 AFP-negative and 109 AFP-positive HCC patients who underwent RO radical hepatectomy in the Cancer Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences between January 2006 and December 2011 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed in this study.

RESULTSCompared with the AFP-negative patients, a higher female to male sex ratio, the later Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer ( BCLC) stage, more liver capsule invasion and poorer Edmondson-Steiner grade were in the AFP-positive cases (P < 0.05 for all). Furthermore, the 1-, 3-, and 5- year overall survival rates were 94.4%, 82.4% and 61.0% in the AFP-negative group and 87.2%, 61.1% and 40.2%, respectively, in the AFP-positive group (P < 0.001). The multivariate analysis with Cox's proportional hazards model showed that AFP status, tumor size and Edmondson-Steiner grade are independent risk factors for survival of all the patients (P < 0.05) , and large tumor and Edmondson-Steiner grades III/IV are independent risk factors for worse survival in AFP-negative patients (P < 0.05). However, large tumor diameter was proved to be an independent risk factor leading to poor prognosis of AFP-positive cases (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONHigh levels of AFP indicate that the tumors are more malignant and with unfavorable prognosis.

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; chemistry ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Female ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; chemistry ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Male ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate ; alpha-Fetoproteins ; analysis

OBJECTIVETo investigate the risk factors affecting neoplasm recurrence and metastasis following liver transplantation (LT) and liver resection (LR) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) meeting Milan criteria.

METHODSWe retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 88 patients with HCC meeting Milan criteria undergoing LT or LR in Nanfang Hospital between January, 2006 and December, 2011 and compared the survival rate and recurrence-free survival rate between the two groups. Univariate analysis of 12 variables during peri-operative period was carried out to screen the risk factors affecting neoplasm recurrence and metastasis.

RESULTSThe LT group and HR group had similar 1-, 3-, and 5-year-survival rates (P>0.05), but the LT group showed significantly higher 1-, 3-, and 5-year recurrence-free survival rates (P<0.05). The recurrence rate was much lower in LT group than in LR group (P<0.05). Multivariate analysis identified gender, tumor size, degree of pathological differentiation, and microvascular tumor embolism as independent risk factors affecting the recurrence-free survival rate.

CONCLUSIONPatients with HCC meeting Milan criteria undergoing LT have longer long-term recurrence-free survival. A male patient with a greater tumor size, microvascular tumor embolism, and poorly differentiated carcinoma is more likely to develop neoplasm recurrence and metastasis following the surgery.

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Female ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Liver Transplantation ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome

At present, surgical treatment is the only curative option for gallbladder (GB) cancer. Many efforts therefore have been made to improve resectability and the survival rate. However, GB cancer has a low incidence, and no randomized, controlled trials have been conducted to establish the optimal treatment modalities. The present guidelines include recent recommendations based on current understanding and highlight controversial issues that require further research. For T1a GB cancer, the optimal treatment modality is simple cholecystectomy, which can be carried out as either a laparotomy or a laparoscopic surgery. For T1b GB cancer, either simple or an extended cholecystectomy is appropriate. An extended cholecystectomy is generally recommended for patients with GB cancer at stage T2 or above. In extended cholecystectomy, a wedge resection of the GB bed or a segmentectomy IVb/V can be performed and the optimal extent of lymph node dissection should include the cystic duct lymph node, the common bile duct lymph node, the lymph nodes around the hepatoduodenal ligament (the hepatic artery and portal vein lymph nodes), and the posterior superior pancreaticoduodenal lymph node. Depending on patient status and disease severity, surgeons may decide to perform palliative surgeries.
Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic/*methods ; Gallbladder Neoplasms/epidemiology/mortality/*surgery ; Humans ; Incidental Findings ; Laparotomy ; Liver Neoplasms/secondary/*surgery ; Lymph Node Excision/*methods ; Lymph Nodes/pathology/surgery ; Lymphatic Metastasis/*pathology ; Survival Rate

BACKGROUNDBudd-Chiari syndrome (BCS) is characterized by liver sinusoidal congestion, ischemic liver cell damage, and liver portal hypertension caused by hepatic venous outflow constriction. The aim of this research was to investigate the clinicopathological features of BCS-associated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and explore its surgical treatment and prognosis.

METHODSClinical data from 38 patients with BCS-associated HCC who were surgically treated in our hospital from July 1998 to August 2010 were retrospectively analyzed. The clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients with BCSassociated HCC and surgical treatment for BCS-associated HCC were investigated.

RESULTSCompared to the patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated HCC, the patients with BCS-associated HCC showed a female predominance, and had significantly higher cirrhosis rate, higher incidence of solitary tumors, lower incidence of infiltrative growth, higher proportion of marginal or exogenous growth, lower rate of portal vein invasion, and higher degree of differentiation. Median survival was longer in patients with BCS-associated HCC (76 months) than in those with HBV associated HCC (38 months). Of 38 patients with BCS-associated HCC, 22 patients who received combined surgery mainly by liver resection plus cavoatrial shunts exhibited hepatic venous outflow constriction relief, while the other 16 patients only underwent liver resection. The combined surgery group had significantly longer survival and lower incidences of post-operative lethal complications (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that relief of hepatic venous outflow obstruction was a protective factor for survival of patients with BCS-associated HCC, whereas portal vein invasion was a risk factor.

CONCLUSIONSBCS-associated HCC has a more favorable biological behavior and prognosis than HBV-associated HCC. For patients with BCS-associated HCC, tumor resection accompanied with relief of hepatic venous outflow obstruction can reduce the incidence of complications and extend survival.

Adult ; Aged ; Budd-Chiari Syndrome ; complications ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; mortality ; pathology ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Recurrence after hepatic resection is one of the most important factors impacting the prognosis and survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We identified prognostic factors affecting overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) in patients with HCC after hepatic resection. METHODS: This study was of a retrospective cohort design, and 126 patients who underwent hepatic resection for HCC at Gachon University Gil Medical Center between January 2005 and December 2010 were enrolled. Various clinical, laboratory, and pathological data were evaluated to determine the prognostic factors affecting OS and DFS. RESULTS: Two- and 4-year OS and 2- and 4-year DFS were 78.1% and 65% and 51.1% and 26.6%, respectively. In a multivariate analysis, preoperative alpha-fetoprotein (> 400 ng/mL), tumor size (> or = 5 cm), multiple tumors (two or more nodules), presence of portal vein invasion, modified Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) stage III/IV, and Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage B/C were independent prognostic factors affecting a shorter OS. In the multivariate analysis, presence of microvascular invasion, modified UICC stage III/IV, and BCLC stage B/C were independent prognostic factors for a shorter DFS. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of vascular invasion was an independent poor prognostic factor for OS and DFS in patients with HCC after hepatic resection. Thus, close postoperative surveillance for early detection of recurrence and additional treatments are urgently needed in patients with vascular invasion after hepatic resection.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/blood/mortality/secondary/*surgery ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; *Hepatectomy/adverse effects/mortality ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Liver Neoplasms/blood/mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Neoplasm Staging ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Time Factors ; Treatment Outcome ; Tumor Burden ; alpha-Fetoproteins/analysis