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Actual therapeutic efficacy of pre-transplant treatment on hepatocellular carcinoma and its impact on survival after salvage living donor liver transplantation

  • Original Article—Liver, Pancreas, and Biliary Tract
  • Published:
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Abstract

Background

The exact efficacy of pre-liver transplant (LT) therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the impact on survival after LT remain controversial in regard to salvage LT.

Materials and methods

Of 79 patients transplanted in Nagasaki University Hospital between August 1997 and December 2007, 29 patients (36.7%) were indicated for HCC based on the Milan criteria using computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Pre-LT therapy other than liver resection had been performed in 18 cases (62.1%) for 24 lesions. Treated lesions were analyzed histologically using thin slices of the whole explanted liver.

Results

Pre-LT therapy included transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for 10 lesions, percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) + TACE for 1 lesion, PEI in 6 lesions and ablation therapy in 7 lesions. Under preoperative imaging study, 19 lesions (79.1%) were “thought-to-be” necrotic by pre-LT therapy. However, histologically, viable HCCs were still observed in 9 lesions (9/19 47%). A median interval between the first pre-therapy and LT was 22 months, while last pre-LT therapy and LT was 11 months. No sarcomatous HCC or forced portal venous tumor thrombus was found in all cases with residual lesions. One peritoneal recurrence has occurred after LT, in whom PEI and RFA had been performed before LDLT. The disease free survival after LDLT was comparable to that of cases without pre-LT therapy.

Conclusion

Half of the preoperatively “thought-to-be” necrotic lesions still contained viable HCC cells after the pre-LT treatment. Overall, the history of pre-LT therapy does not preclude or interfere with subsequent LT, although percutaneous treatment may spread disseminated tumor cell growth under immunosuppression.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki, 852-8501, Japan

    Susumu Eguchi, Masaaki Hidaka, Tetsuo Tomonaga, Kensuke Miyazaki, Takamitsu Inokuma, Mitsuhisa Takatsuki, Sadayuki Okudaira, Kosho Yamanouchi, Yoshitsugu Tajima & Takashi Kanematsu

  2. Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan

    Hisamitsu Miyaaki & Tatsuki Ichikawa

Authors
  1. Susumu Eguchi
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  2. Masaaki Hidaka
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  3. Tetsuo Tomonaga
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  4. Kensuke Miyazaki
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  5. Takamitsu Inokuma
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  6. Mitsuhisa Takatsuki
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  7. Sadayuki Okudaira
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  8. Kosho Yamanouchi
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  9. Hisamitsu Miyaaki
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  10. Tatsuki Ichikawa
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  11. Yoshitsugu Tajima
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  12. Takashi Kanematsu
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Correspondence to Susumu Eguchi.

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Eguchi, S., Hidaka, M., Tomonaga, T. et al. Actual therapeutic efficacy of pre-transplant treatment on hepatocellular carcinoma and its impact on survival after salvage living donor liver transplantation. J Gastroenterol 44, 624–629 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-009-0043-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-009-0043-9

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