Introduction: Liver transplantation has re-emerged as a potential therapeutic option for patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastases after failure of standard treatments. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated survival outcomes, recurrence patterns, and prognostic factors associated with this approach. Materials and Methods: A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA 2020 guidelines and registered in PROSPERO. Electronic databases were searched for studies published between November 2015 and November 2025, that assessed liver transplantation in the context of unresectable colorectal liver metastases. Random-effect meta-analyses were conducted to estimate the pooled overall survival, disease-free survival and recurrence rates. Heterogeneity was assessed using I2 statistics. Results: Twenty-three studies involving patients with unresectable liver-only colorectal metastases were included. Pooled overall survival after liver transplantation was 96.6% at 1 year (95% CI 93.9–99.4; I2 = 44.3%), 73.4% at 3 years (95% CI 62.9–83.9; I2 = 95.4%), and 49.4% at 5 years (95% CI 35.4–63.3; I2 = 90.5%). Ten-year overall survival was approximately 27%. The pooled recurrence rate was 63.5% (95% CI 52.5–76.8), and the type of recurrence was mainly extrahepatic, most commonly pulmonary. Disease-free survival was 64.1% (95% CI 47.5–80.7) with substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 95.6%). Biological risk factors, including carcinoembryonic antigen levels, metabolic tumor volume, and composite risk scores, consistently influenced survival outcomes. Conclusions: In highly selected patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastases, liver transplantation is associated with favorable long-term survival despite frequent recurrence. Outcomes appear to be primarily driven by tumor biology rather than tumor burden, supporting the cautious use within specialized centers under structured selection protocols.
Soomro et al. (Wed,) studied this question.
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