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Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to evaluate the treatment outcomes of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for patients with non-B non-C hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (NBNC-HCC) within Milan criteria, as well as to compare them with those of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related HCC (HBV-HCC).
Methods
From January 2007 to February 2020, 303 patients with primary HCC who underwent RFA were retrospectively reviewed, including 259 patients with HBV-HCC (HBV-HCC group) and 44 patients with NBNC-HCC (NBNC-HCC group). The clinical characteristics and treatment survivals were evaluated and compared. Moreover, the propensity score matching was used to reduce selection bias.
Results
A significantly lower proportion of cirrhosis was observed in the NBNC-HCC group (p = .048). Before propensity score matching, local tumor progression, disease-free survival, and overall survival after RFA showed no significant differences between the two groups (all p > .05). After matching, the overall survival rates in the NBNC-HCC group were significantly better than those in the HBV-HCC group (p = .042). Moreover, for patients with NBNC-HCC, tumor size (hazard ratio = 8.749, 95% confidence interval, 1.599–47.849; p = .012) was the only independent predictor of local tumor progression.
Conclusions
Patients with NBNC-HCC within the Milan criteria after RFA had better long-term survival than patients with HBV-HCC, although larger, prospective and multicenter trials are required to validate these results.
Author contributions
Prof. Liu and Prof. Xie had full access to all the data in the study and takes the responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. Study concept and design: Baoxian Liu, Yang Tan, and Xioahua Xie; acquisition of data: Baoxian Liu, Yang Tan, Hui Shen, Lin Wang, Tongyi Huang, and Haiyi Long; analysis and interpretation of data: Baoxian Liu, Yang Tan, Hui Shen, and Lin Wang; drafting of the manuscript: Baoxian Liu, Yang Tan, and Xiaohua Xie; critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: Baoxian Liu, Xiaoyan Xie, and Xiaohua Xie. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.
Disclosure statement
We declare that the submitted manuscript does not contain any previously published material and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Each author made an important scientific contribution to the study and was thoroughly familiar with the primary data. All authors listed have read the complete manuscript and approved its submission. This manuscript is a truthful original work without fabrication, fraud, or plagiarism. All authors declare that there were no conflicts of interest.
Data availability statement
We understand the terms of the share upon reasonable request data policy and our data generated or analyzed during the study are available from the corresponding author upon request.