Long-term outcomes and salvageability in patients undergoing liver resection for intermediate- and advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma

The prognosis of intermediate- and advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma after liver resection should be comprehensively analyzed due to the high incidence of tumor recurrence and the availability of salvage therapy. This study evaluated the long-term outcome and salvageability in these patients after liver resection.Data from consecutive patients with intermediate- and advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma who underwent initial liver resection from 2000 to 2016 were retrospectively reviewed. Analyses were performed in the setting of the initial liver resection and the recurrence(s). Active salvage therapy for recurrence was defined as the implementation of each therapy with curative intent-repeat surgery, ablative therapy, and liver transplantation.Among the 1,013 liver resections for hepatocellular carcinoma, a total of 270 patients were eligible for this study (intermediate hepatocellular carcinoma, n = 134; advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, n = 136). The 5-year overall survival rates for intermediate and advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma were 49.7% and 36.8%, respectively; meanwhile, the actual recurrence rates excluding patients who died without recurrence were 94.7% and 90.7%, respectively. Active salvage therapy was performed in 43 (39.8%) patients with intermediate-stage hepatocellular carcinoma and 25 (23.4%) patients with advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma. Overall survival after initial liver resection, first active salvage therapy, and second/more active salvage therapy were comparable in both stages.This study suggests that although liver resection alone may not yield remission in most patients with intermediate and advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma, active salvage therapy can potentially prolong survival. Further study to identify approaches to decrease recurrence rates and increase salvageability for these patients would be warranted.