Diabetes mellitus worsens the recurrence rate after potentially curative therapy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma associated with nonviral hepatitis

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The aim of this retrospective study was to examine the relationship between diabetes mellitus and recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after potentially curative therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma with nonviral hepatitis. METHODS: We studied 40 consecutive hepatocellular carcinoma patients who were diagnosed between 1980 and 2006 with hepatocellular carcinoma associated with non-B, non-C hepatitis, and later underwent surgical resection or radiofrequency ablation. RESULTS: Twenty-two out of the 40 patients developed hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence within a median of 3.7 years. In the 18 patients with diabetes mellitus, the cumulative rates of hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence were 22.2% at the first year, 55.6% at the second year, 61.1% at the third year, 61.1% at the fourth year, and 80.6% at the fifth year. The cumulative rates of hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence in 22 nondiabetic patients were 24.6% at the first year, 24.6% at the second year, 31.5% at the third year, 31.5% at the fourth year, and 31.5% at the fifth year. The hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence rate was significantly higher in diabetic patients than in nondiabetics (P = 0.026). The multivariate Cox proportional model identified old age and diabetes as the only significant predictors for recurrence. The hazard ratio of hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence in diabetic patients was 4.61 (P = 0.007). There was no significant difference in overall survival rate between diabetic and nondiabetic patients (P = 0.392). CONCLUSION: Diabetes is a significant predictor of tumor recurrence after potentially curative therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with nonviral hepatitis.