Prognostic factors in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma treated by transcatheter arterial embolization.
BACKGROUND
Transcatheter arterial embolization induces marked antitumor response in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, but the survival benefit of transcatheter arterial embolization remains to be determined. This study investigated prognostic factors in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma treated by transcatheter arterial embolization.


METHODS
A total of 128 consecutive patients with non-resectable hepatocellular carcinoma, who had undergone transcatheter arterial embolization between May 1990 and August 1998, were analyzed to investigate prognostic factors.


RESULTS
Median survival time and survival proportions at 1, 3 and 5 years were 3.3 years, 92.0, 54.6 and 23.4%, respectively. By multivariate analysis using the accelerated failure time model, age <60 years, hepatitis C virus antibody positivity, serum albumin >3.5 g/dl, absence of portal vein invasion and serum alpha-fetoprotein level <400 ng/ml were significantly associated with favorable survival. For clinical application, we also propose a prognostic equation with combination of specific prognostic factors, by which survival curves of each patient could be predicted directly.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings of the current study may be helpful in predicting the life expectancy of hepatocellular carcinoma patients treated by transcatheter arterial embolization and in designing future clinical trials of transcatheter arterial embolization for hepatocellular carcinoma.
Ikeda
Masafumi
M
Division of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. sokada@ncc.go.jp
Okada
Shuichi
S
Yamamoto
Seiichiro
S
Sato
Tosiya
T
Ueno
Hideki
H
Okusaka
Takuji
T
Kuriyama
Hitoshi
H
Takayasu
Kenichi
K
Furukawa
Hiroyoshi
H
Iwata
Ryoko
R
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D004621:Embolization, Therapeutic; D005260:Female; D006499:Hepatic Artery; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate