title: Important prognostic factors for the long-term survival of subjects with primary liver cancer in Taiwan: a hyperendemic area.
abstract: This study used a large-scale cancer database in determining the survival prognostic factors among primary liver cancer (PLC) subjects. A total of 28,939 subjects diagnosed with PLC were analysed. Survival estimates were performed with Kaplan-Meier methods. Cox's proportional-hazards model estimated the death risk (hazard ratio (HR)) of prognostic factors. The prognostic indicators associated with higher risk of all-cause deaths are male gender (males versus females; HR=1.16, 95% confidence intervals (CI), 1.13-1.20), diagnosis at later period (shown in 1990-1994 versus 1985-1989; HR=1.04, 95% CI, 1.01-1.08), increasing age at diagnosis, subjects with adenocarcinoma/cholangiocarcinoma (CC) and with no therapy against those with chemotherapy. The overall 5-year survival rate for all causes of death was significantly poorer in males (13.7%) than females (17.2%). Subjects diagnosed with hepatoblastoma and treated by surgical resection alone had superior prognosis. Particularly, subjects with adenocarcinoma and CC were more likely to die in other metastatic cancer.
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Health and Occupational Medicine, National Health Research Institutes, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ping-Ho
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Ying-Chu
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Hung-Pin
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Tu
authors.forename: Shang-Lun
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Albert Min-Shan
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.forename: Chun-Lan
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Yu-Fang
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Ying-Chin
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Ko
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000401:mortality; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000401:mortality; D002423:Cause of Death; D018281:Cholangiocarcinoma / Q000401:mortality; D019353:Endemic Diseases / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D017678:Sex Distribution; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology