Role of surgical resection for pulmonary metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma.
BACKGROUND
The lung is one of the most important organs affected by metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma. However, pulmonary metastasectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma has not been well documented. The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term outcome after pulmonary metastasectomy due to metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma.


METHODS
Between January 1998 and December 2008, 41 patients underwent pulmonary metastasectomy. Retrospective reviews of medical records and telephone surveys were conducted to identify risk factors of long-term survival.


RESULTS
Median time between a complete remission of hepatocellular carcinoma and pulmonary metastasectomy was 11 (4-105) months. During median 25-month follow-up time after metastasectomy, hepatocellular carcinoma recurred in 33 patients. Overall survival rate was 66.9±10% in all 41 patients and disease free survival was 24.5±10% in 24 patients who had no viable hepatocellular carcinoma in the liver preoperatively. An analysis of recurrence revealed that survival was better in patients whose recurrence was limited to either in the liver or lungs compared to that in patients whose recurrence took place in the distant organ other than the liver or lungs (extrahepatic/extrapulmonary metastasis) (p=0.004, log-rank).


CONCLUSIONS
Pulmonary metastasectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma can be performed safely without major morbidity. Recurrence at organs other than the liver or lung was found to result in poor survival, which suggests that a careful search for distant metastasis at other locations is mandatory for patient selection. This study demonstrated that pulmonary metastasectomy can play an important role in selected patients with pulmonary metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma.
Han
Kook Nam
KN
Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Clinical Research Center, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Kim
Young Tae
YT
Yoon
Jung-Hwan
JH
Suh
Kyung-Suk
KS
Song
Ji Yeon
JY
Kang
Chang Hyun
CH
Sung
Sook Whan
SW
Kim
Joo Hyun
JH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery* / Q000628:therapy; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery* / Q000628:therapy; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery* / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome