Analysis of prognostic factors affecting survival after initial recurrence and treatment efficacy for recurrence in patients undergoing potentially curative hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma

Background: Survival analysis in patients with initial recurrence after curative hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been well evaluated. In addition, selections of the most effective treatments for patients with recurrent HCC still remain controversial. Methods: Three hundred and nineteen patients who underwent potentially curative hepatectomies were followed for initial recurrence, and factors predictive of recurrence were determined. The factors affecting survival including pattern of recurrence and treatment modalities from the time of initial recurrence in 211 patients were retrospectively analyzed. Results: The overall 5-year disease-free survival rate of 319 patients was 31.1%. The 5-year survival rate of 211 patients from the time of initial recurrence was 31.9%. In a multivariate analysis, a low indocyanine green retention rate, lack of liver cirrhosis, a long interval before recurrence, the absence of portal vein invasion, and intrahepatic recurrence (≤3 nodules) were shown to be significantly favorable prognostic factors after the initial recurrence. The 5-year survival rate of patients with intrahepatic recurrence (≤3 nodules) was 42.3%, and no survival differences were observed among different treatment modalities. Conclusion: When the initial recurrence occurred after a longer interval, and/or with three or fewer intrahepatic recurrent nodules, a favorable prognosis could be expected in those patients with better liver function and no portal vein invasion at the time of the primary hepatectomy. It is important to conduct a randomized controlled trial to clarify a method for selecting optimal treatment in patients with a smaller number of initial intrahepatic recurrences.