Predictors of Survival After Resection of Early Hepatocellular Carcinoma

OBJECTIVE: To identify clinicopathologic factors that predict survival following hepatectomy in patients with early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: Although surgical resection of early HCC is thought to be associated with a good outcome, factors predictive of prognosis following resection of these tumors remain ill-defined. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was used to identify patients with histologically confirmed early HCC (2 cm (hazard ratio HR: 1.51), multifocal tumors (HR: 1.51), and vascular invasion (HR: 1.44) remained independent predictors of poor survival (all P or =2 points (24 months, 29%) (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Although early HCC is generally associated with a good prognosis, pathologic factors can still be used to stratify patients with respect to survival after resection. These data emphasize the importance of pathologic staging even in small HCC.