title: Expansion of the criteria for living donor liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Several expanded criteria for liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have been suggested out of concern that the Milan criteria may be too strict, and thereby exclude patients who could benefit from this surgical procedure. However, most expanded criteria were designed for deceased donor liver transplantation. Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) differs from that of deceased donor liver transplantation primarily because LDLT liver grafts are not public resources.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In Asian countries, where HCC is endemic, LDLT is the main currently available treatment option for HCC. High-volume LDLT centers throughout Asia have adopted their own expanded selection criteria for LDLT for HCC with acceptable long-term results. Some centers utilize tumor markers as one of the criterion to help select suitable candidates. Indeed, such adjunctive biomarkers may have prognostic relevance for patients with HCC. The use of both biological and histomorphologic parameters may increase the number of transplantable patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The overall chance of survival, and recipient/donor preferences as well as the risk of recurrence are considered in the LDLT setting. Therefore, the selection criteria for liver transplantation for HCC could benefit from expansion for LDLT.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine bDepartment of Surgery, Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Hae Won
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Kyung-Suk
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Suh
mesh_terms: D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D019520:Living Donors; D018579:Patient Selection