ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the role of P-I-R classification and Laennec grading in evaluating histological changes in patients with hepatitis B cirrhosis after receiving antiviral therapy, as well as the association of these two evaluation systems with clinical prognosis. Methods A total of 218 patients from 14 centers were consecutively screened from October 2013 to October 2014, and these patients were diagnosed with liver cirrhosis based on pathology (Ishak score ≥5), received antiviral therapy for 72 weeks, completed two liver biopsies, and met the P-I-R classification criteria. The 218 patients were divided into non-hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) group with 186 patients and HCC group with 32 patients. The chi-square test and the Fisher's exact test were used for comparison of categorical data between groups. For the comparison of HCC after antiviral therapy, the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test was used for continuous variables, and for the comparison of P-I-R classification and Laennec grading, the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for continuous variables. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to calculate hazard ratio ( HR ) and 95% confidence interval ( CI ), and the Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the cumulative incidence rate of HCC. Results After 72 weeks of antiviral therapy, there was a significant difference in P-I-R classification between the non-HCC group and the HCC group ( P < 0.001). There were significant differences in the distribution of Laennec grading and P-I-R classification before and after antiviral therapy ( P < 0.001). After antiviral therapy, the 218 patients were divided into 4A group with 33 patients, 4B group with 71 patients, and 4C group with 114 patients according to Laennec grading, and there were significant differences between these three groups in platelet count (PLT) ( H =36.429, P < 0.001), liver stiffness measurement (LSM) ( H =13.983, P =0.004), Ishak score ( χ 2 =23.060, P < 0.001), and HAI score ( P < 0.001). After antiviral therapy, the 218 patients were divided into R group with 70 patients, I group with 52 patients, and P group with 96 patients according to P-I-R classification, and there were significant differences between these three groups in PLT ( H =7.193, P =0.028), LSM ( H =6.238, P =0.045), Ishak score ( χ 2 =7.986, P < 0.001), HAI score ( P =0.002), and HCC ( P < 0.001). There was a significant difference in the incidence rate of HCC between the P and R groups based on P-I-R classification ( HR =24.21, 95% CI : 0.46-177.99, P =0.002). After adjustment for other confounding factors, P-I-R classification was an independent predictive factor for HCC ( HR =12.69, 95% CI : 4.63-34.80, P =0.002). Conclusion Both P-I-R classification and Laennec grading can reflect the features and changes of fibrosis before and after antiviral therapy, and P-I-R classification is more sensitive to fibrosis changes after antiviral therapy. P-I-R classification (after treatment) can be used to assess the risk of HCC in patients after antiviral therapy.
ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of percutaneous cryoablation combined with percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) in elderly patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma aged 70 years or older. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 92 elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who were admitted to The Fifth Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital from January 2014 to January 2018, among whom 46 underwent cryoablation alone (CRYO group) and 46 underwent cryoablation combined with PEI (combination therapy group). The two groups were compared in terms of clinical outcome, adverse reactions, and changes in liver function parameters after treatment, and the patients were followed up to observe tumor recurrence and survival. The t -test was used for comparison of normally distributed continuous data between two groups, and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between two groups; the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis, and the log-rank test was used for comparison of survival curves. The Cox regression analysis was used to identify the independent risk factors for survival and prognosis. Results There was no significant difference in the response rate of initial ablation between the combination therapy group and the CRYO group (89.1% vs 73.9%, P > 0.05). There were no significant differences between the CRYO group and the combination therapy group in overall survival time and tumor-free survival rate after surgery ( P > 0.05), and compared with the CRYO group, the combination therapy group had significantly lower 1-, 2-, and 3-year local tumor progression rates (20%/21%/21% vs 30%/46%/46%, χ 2 =4.187, P 0.05), but 3 patients in the CRYO group experienced serious adverse reactions, while no patients in the combination therapy group experienced such reactions. Conclusion For elderly patients with early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma, cryoablation combined with PEI is safer and more effective than cryoablation alone and can significantly reduce local tumor progression rate.