The Outcome of Salvage Liver Transplantation and Liver Resection for Recurrent Hepatocellular Carcinoma Using the 5-5-500 Rule, Japanese Extended Liver Transplantation Criteria for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Liver transplantation (LT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is limited to Child-Pugh class C patients according to the Japanese HCC treatment algorithm. However, extended criteria of LT for HCC, known as the 5-5-500 rule, were published in 2019. Hepatocellular carcinoma reportedly has a high recurrence rate after primary treatment. We hypothesized that the outcome of recurrent HCC would be improved if the 5-5-500 rule were adopted for patients with recurrent HCC. We, therefore, analyzed the outcomes of surgical treatment (liver resection [LR] and LT) for recurrent HCC using the 5-5-500 rule in our institute. METHODS: Fifty-two patients younger than 70 years of age received surgical treatment for recurrent HCC using our institute's 5-5-500 rule from 2010 to 2019. We divided these patients into the LR and LT groups in the first study. The 10-year overall survival and re-recurrence-free survival were analyzed. The second study analyzed the risk factors of re-recurrence after surgical treatment for recurrent HCC. RESULTS: In the first study, the background characteristics of the 2 groups (LR and LT) showed no significant difference, except for age and Child-Pugh classification. There was no significant difference in the overall survival between groups (P = .35), but the re-recurrence-free survival in the LR group was significantly shorter than that in the LT group (P < .01). In the second study, the male sex and LR were risk factors of re-recurrence after surgical treatment for recurrent HCC. Child-Pugh's class did not contribute to re-recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: To improve the outcomes of recurrent HCC, LT is the better choice, regardless of the Child-Pugh class.

Hepatocellular adenoma, approximately half and predominantly inflammatory subtype, in 38 Japanese patients with several differences in age, gender, and clinical background factors from Western populations.

AIM: Hepatocellular adenoma (HCA) has a lower prevalence in Japan than in Western countries and HCA subtypes have been reported for only a few Japanese patients. We analyzed HCA subtype data 38 patients from 23 hospitals in Japan in order to examine character and difference between Western countries. METHODS: To confirm HCA and to analyze subtypes, we performed immunohistochemical examinations. RESULTS: Thirty-eight cases were found to have HCA without cirrhosis. The male/female ratio was 18/20. Ages ranged from 15 to 79 (average, 43.2) years. Male and elder patients are not rare, furthermore, most of elder patients are male. Glycogen storage disease, past history of medicament use, hepatitis B virus surface antigen-positivity, antihepatitis C virus -positivity, diabetes mellitus, obesity, lipid metabolism disorder and alcoholism were present in of 6, 8, 1, 1, 6, 6, 4, and 6 cases, respectively. As to HCA subtypes, HNF1alpha-inactivated HCA, beta-catenin activated HCA (b-HCA), inflammatory HCA (IHCA) and unclassified HCA (U-HCA) accounted for nine (23.7%), four (10.5%), 17 (44.7%) and eight (21.1%) cases, respectively. Two cases showed coexistence of HCA and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at surgery, and another had HCC which had been detected 23 years after HCA diagnosis. The HCA subtype of one of the former cases was U-HCA, while the remaining two had b-HCA and U-HCA. CONCLUSIONS: In Japanese HCA cases, the proportions of U-HCA, male and elder cases were slightly higher than in Western countries, and most of elder patients were male. IHCA was however common regardless of race, and was assumed to be the predominant subtype of HCA.