title: Long-term results of percutaneous ethanol injection for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma in Korea.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the long-term follow-up results of percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in Korea.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-eight nodular HCCs initially detected in 64 patients, were subjected to US-guided PEI as a first-line treatment. Long-term survival rates, local tumor progression rates, and complications were evaluated, as were the influences of tumor size and Child-Pugh class on these variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No major complications occurred. The overall survival rates of the 64 patients at three and five years were 71% and 39%, and their cancer-free survival rates were 22% and 15%, respectively. The overall survival rate of patients with a small HCC (< or =2 cm) was significantly higher (p = 0.014) than that of patients with a medium-sized HCC (< or =2 cm). The overall survival rate of patients with Child-Pugh class A was significantly higher (p = 0.049) than that of patients with Child-Pugh class B. Of 59 cases with no residual tumor, local tumor progression was observed in ablation zones in 18, and this was not found to be significantly influenced by tumor size or Child-Pugh class.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of our investigation of the long-term survival rates of PEI in HCC patients in Korea (a hepatitis B virus-endemic area) were consistent with those reported previously in hepatitis C endemic areas. Patients with a smaller tumor or a better liver function exhibited superior survival rates.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Center for Imaging Science, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Yon Mi
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Sung
authors.forename: Dongil
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Hyo K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Won Jae
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Seung Hoon
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Min Ju
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Seung Woon
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Paik
authors.forename: Byung Chul
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Yoo
authors.forename: Kwang Cheol
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Koh
authors.forename: Joon Hyoek
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Moon Seok
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007279:Injections, Subcutaneous; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D000431:Ethanol