Abstract Objectives To evaluate transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) selection for postoperative hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients based on albumin-bilirubin (ALBI) grade. Methods This retrospective study analyzed 239 HCC patients with postoperative recurrence treated with drug-eluting bead TACE (DEB-TACE) or conventional TACE (cTACE) from January 2016 to December 2024. Cox regression identified survival predictors, and patients were stratified for survival analysis. Results This study included a total of 239 patients with a median follow-up time of 27 months, including 118 cases of DEB-TACE and 121 cases of cTACE. Multivariate analysis suggested that AFP (p = 0.002), albumin (p = 0.003), and ALBI grade (p p p p > 0.05). Conclusion ALBI grade is a key prognostic factor for recurrent HCC. DEB-TACE may improve survival in ALBI II–III patients, whereas either method is suitable for ALBI grade I.
Chen et al. (Tue,) studied this question.