• Jian-hong Zhong, Yang Ke, Wen-feng Gong, Bang-de Xiang, Liang Ma, Xin-ping Ye, Tao Peng, Gui-sheng Xie, and Le-qun Li.
• *Hepatobiliary Surgery Department, Tumor Hospital of Guangxi Medical University †Hepatobiliary Surgery Department, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University ‡General Surgery Department, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning 530021, PR China.
• Ann. Surg.. 2014 Aug 1;260(2):329-40.

ObjectiveThe efficacy and safety of hepatic resection (HR) to treat patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage B and C hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was retrospectively assessed.BackgroundAlthough guidelines from the European Association for the Study of Liver Disease and the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease do not recommend HR for treating BCLC stage B/C HCC, several Asian and European studies have come to the opposite conclusions.MethodsA consecutive sample of 1259 patients with BCLC stage B/C HCC who underwent HR (n = 908) or transarterial chemoembolization (TACE, n = 351) were included. Moreover, propensity score-matched patients were analyzed to adjust for any baseline differences. In parallel with this retrospective clinical study, the MEDLINE database was searched for studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of HR for BCLC stage B/C HCC.ResultsAmong our patient sample, the 90-day mortality rate in the HR group was 3.1%. HR provided a survival benefit over TACE at 1, 3, and 5 years (88% vs 81%, 62% vs 33%, and 39% vs 16%, respectively; all P < 0.001). Propensity scoring and subgroup analyses based on tumor size, tumor number, presence or absence of macrovascular invasion, and portal hypertension (PHT) also showed that HR was associated with better long-term survival than TACE. All 36 studies identified in our literature search reported that HR is associated with good long-term survival and low morbidity. Multivariate analyses revealed that alpha-fetoprotein more than or equal to 400 ng/mL, diabetes mellitus, macrovascular invasion, and PHT are independent predictors of poor prognosis in patients with BCLC stage B/C HCC.ConclusionsOur clinical and literature analyses suggest that in patients with HCC with preserved liver function, the presence of large, solitary tumors, multinodular tumors, macrovascular invasion, or PHT are not contraindications for HR.

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