Management of ruptured hepatocellular carcinoma:Implications for therapy

AIM:To assess the treatment and tumor-related variables associated with outcome after treatment of spontaneously ruptured hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).METHODS: Patients with ruptured HCC were identif ied. The complications, mortality and survival were assessed. The relationship between tumor size and the severity of hemoperitoneum and between tumor size and grade were examined.RESULTS: From January 1993 to January 2008, 556 patients with HCC with or without cirrhosis were evaluated; of which, 16 (2.87%) presented with spontaneous rupture. All but 1 patient had cirrhosis. Twelve patients underwent surgical resection while 4 underwent trans-cutaneous arterial catheter embolization (TAE) (trans-cutaneous arterial embolization). Early mortality (<30 d) was 25% (4 of 16) and was inversely relatedto Child-Pugh score; 3 of the 4 early deaths occurred in patients treated with TAE with 1 of 12 occurring in the resected group. There was no correlation between tumor size and grade or between size and severity of hemoperitoneum.CONCLUSION: Tumor size did not correlate with severity of the hemoperitoneum. There was an inverse relationship between G1-G3 (grade of cellular differentiation) HCC and dimensions.

Metabolic imaging for guidance of curative treatment of isolated pelvic implantation metastasis after resection of spontaneously ruptured hepatocellular carcinoma: A case report

Spontaneous rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) is a life-threatening complication and its prognosis is significantly poor because of the high recurrence rate after initial hepatectomy. Resection of isolated extrahepatic metastasis of HCC has been advocated to obtain a possibility of long-term survival. However, it is a challenge for clinicians to detect implantation metastasis of spontaneously ruptured HCC. Accurate re-staging plays the most important role in making a decision on isolated metastasis resection. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose(18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography(PET/CT) is useful in detecting intraabdominal implantation metastasis from a variety of malignancies and shows superior accuracy to conventional imaging modalities in determining the location of metastasis. We present one patient with a new isolated pelvic implantation metastasis detected by 18F-FDG PET/CT and pathologically confirmed by PET/CT-guided percutaneous biopsy, who had a history of resection of spontaneously ruptured HCC two years ago. The patient's condition was stable at the 6-mo follow-up after resection of the isolated pelvic metastasis.

Predictors and clinical outcomes for spontaneous rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM:To determine the risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) rupture,and report the management and long-term survival results of patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC.METHODS:Among 4209 patients with HCC who were diagnosed at Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital from April 2002 to November 2006,200(4.8%) patients with ruptured HCC(case group) were studied retrospectively in term of their clinical characteristics and prognostic factors.The one-stage therapeutic approach to manage ruptured HCC consisted of initial management by conservative treatment,transarterial embolization(TACE) or hepatic resection.Results of various treatments in the case group were evaluated and compared with the control group(202 patients) without ruptured HCC during the same study period.Continuous data were expressed as mean ± SD or me-dian(range) where appropriate and compared using the unpaired t test.Categorical variables were compared using the Chi-square test with Yates correction or the Fisher exact test where appropriate.The overall survival rate in each group was determined using the Kaplan-Meier method and a log-rank test.RESULTS:Compared with the control group,more patients in the case group had underlying diseases of hypertension(7.5% vs 3.0%,P =0.041) and liver cirrhosis(87.5% vs 56.4%,P < 0.001),tumor size >5 cm(83.0% vs 57.4%,P < 0.001),tumor protrusion from the liver surface(66.0% vs 44.6%,P < 0.001),vascular thrombus(30.5% vs 8.9%,P < 0.001) and extrahepatic invasion(36.5% vs 12.4%,P < 0.001).On multivariate logistic regression analysis,underlying diseases of hypertension(P = 0.002) and liver cirrhosis(P < 0.001),tumor size > 5 cm(P < 0.001),vascular thrombus(P = 0.002) and extrahepatic invasion(P < 0.001) were predictive for spontaneous rupture of HCC.Among the 200 patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC,105 patients underwent hepatic resection,33 received TACE,and 62 were managed with conservative treatment.The median survival time(MST) of all patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC was 6 mo(range,1-72 mo),and the overall survival at 1,3 and 5 years were 32.5%,10% and 4%,respectively.The MST was 12 mo(range,1-72 mo) in the surgical group,4 mo(range,1-30 mo) in the TACE group and 1 mo(range,1-19 mo) in the conservative group.Ninety-eight patients in the control group underwent hepatic resection,and the MST and median diseasefree survival time were 46 mo(range,6-93 mo) and 23 mo(range,3-39 mo) respectively,which were much longer than that of patients with spontaneous rupture of HCC undergoing hepatic resection(P < 0.001).The 1-,3-,and 5-year overall survival rates and the 1-,3-and 5-year disease-free survival rates in patients with ruptured HCC undergoing hepatectomy were 57.1%,19.0% and 7.6%,27.6%,14.3% and 3.8%,respectively,compared with those of 77.1%,59.8% and 41.2%,57.1%,40.6% and 32.9% in 98 patients with-CONCLUSION:Prolonged survival can be achieved in selected patients undergoing one-stage hepatectomy,although the survival results were inferior to those of the patients without ruptured HCC.

Is transarterial embolization a valuable treatment option for spontaneous rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma: experience from a tertiary care hospital of South-Asia

Aim:Transarterial embolization(TAE)has been found beneficial in treatment of ruptured Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)in earlier studies.So far no data is available from Pakistan.The aim of this study was to evaluate clinicopathological characteristics,outcomes of patients presented with spontaneously ruptured,unresectable HCC treated with or without TAE and to evaluate the factors associated with 30-day mortality.Methods:This was a cross sectional study.Patients≥18 years old,presented with spontaneous rupture of unresectable HCC,were evaluated.The outcome measures were control of bleeding,in-hospital mortality,30-day mortality and factors associated with 30-days mortality.Results:Out of 850 patients,24 patients were diagnosed with spontaneously ruptured HCC.Mean age was 58.29±15.26 years.A total of 11(45.8%)patients were treated conservatively and 13(54.2%)underwent TAE.Control of bleeding due to ruptured HCC was significantly higher for those treated via TAE as compared to those who were treated conservatively(92.3%vs.36.4%,P=0.008).Overall median duration for which the patients remained alive after HCC rupture was longer for TAE group(39 days vs.5 days,P=0.03).In-hospital mortality(30.8% vs.72.7%,P=0.04)and 30-day mortality was also lower in TAE group(38.5%vs.90.9%,P=0.01).Those who underwent TAE had lower risk of mortality then conservative group odds ratio(OR)0.25,95% confidence interval(CI0.07-0.90,P=0.03).Failure to control bleeding was associated with higher 30-day mortality(OR 2.14,95% CI 1.24-3.68,P=0.009).Conclusion:Ruptured HCC is a life threatening complication requiring early diagnosis and treatment.TAE is an effective and well-tolerated treatment in the management of ruptured HCC.