Figure 1
Minor complications after drug-eluting microsphere transarterial chemoembolization (DEM-TACE) in the study population
| Complications | Number of procedures (%) |
|---|---|
| Chest pain | 4 (0.9) |
| Pain in the right shoulder | 1 (0.2) |
| Hematoma puncture site at the | 3 (0.7) |
| Gastric erosions | 2 (0.4) |
| Intraprocedural branch rupture small arterial | 1 (0.2) |
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treatment prior to initial doxorubicin-loaded drug-eluting microsphere transarterial chemoembolization (DEM-TACE)
| Treatment | Number of patients (%) |
|---|---|
| No previous treatment | 120 (83.0) |
| cTACE | 2 (1.4) |
| Surgical resection | 13 (9.3) |
| Transplantation | 1 (0.7) |
| Surgical resection and RFA | 1 (0.7) |
| Surgical resection and cTACE | 1 (0.7) |
| RFA | 2 (1.4) |
| MWA | 1 (0.7) |
| ECT | 3 (2.1) |
Patient characteristics at baseline
| Gender, number of patients (%) | |
|---|---|
| Male/Female | 127 (88.2)/17 (11.8) |
| Age, years | |
| Mean ± SD | 67.9 ± 8 |
| Imaging characteristics | |
| Number median of (range) lesions per patient, | 3 (1–10) |
| Bilobar, n. (%) | 52 (36.1) |
| Unilobar, n. (%) | 92 (63.9) |
| Right lobe, n. (%) | 71 (49.3) |
| Left lobe, n. (%) | 21 (14.6) |
| Signs of portal hypertension, n. (%) | |
| Yes/No | 76 (52.8)/68 (47.2) |
| Ascites, n. (%) | |
| Yes/No | 34 (23.6)/110 (76.4) |
| Cirrhosis, n. (%) | |
| Yes/No | 120 (83.3)/24 (16.7) |
| Cirrhosis aetiology, n. (%) | |
| Alcohol | 63 (52.5) |
| HBV | 16 (13.3) |
| HCV | 14 (11.6) |
| Primary biliary cirrhosis | 2 (1.8) |
| Other | 25 (20.8) |
| Child-Pugh score (avg. points ± SD) | 5.7 ± 0.8 |
| Child-Pugh class, n. (%) | |
| A/B | 91 (75.8)/29 (24.2) |
| Barcelona Clinic of Liver Cancer stage, n. (%) | |
| A/B | 50(34.7)/94 (65.3) |
| Laboratory characteristics, median (range) | |
| Albumin, [g/l] | 39.5 (28–50) |
| Total bilirubin, [μmol/l] | 18 (5–83) |
| AFP, [ng/ml] | 14.4 (1.1–12809.8) |
| AST, [μkat/l] | 0.82 (0.35–3.29) |
| GGT, [μkat/l] | 1.77 (0.25–24.95) |
| Creatinine, [μmol/l] | 78 (39.0–148.0) |
Inclusion and exclusion criteria (Child-Pugh; CP)
| Inclusion criteria | early-stage HCC patients ineligible for resection, transplantation or ablation; intermediate-stage HCC patients with a CP score of A or B (up to 7 points); treatment with DEM-TACE under cone beam CT control. |
| Exclusion criteria | DEM-TACE prior to liver transplantation; inability of regular follow-up. |
Overall survival after DEM-TACE in the study population Senči polja med vrsticami
| Factor | Number of patients | Median survival | 95% CI | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Child-Pugh A | 91 | 26.6 | 17.7–35.5 | 0.008 |
| Child-Pugh B | 29 | 19.6 | 18.4–20.8 | |
| Portal hypertension | 76 | 20.2 | 14.7–25.7 | 0.001 |
| No portal hypertension | 68 | 32.4 | 24.0–40.8 | |
| Ascites | 34 | 19.6 | 15.3–23.9 | 0.016 |
| No ascites | 110 | 29 | 23.0–35.0 | |
| Unilobar disease | 92 | 24.9 | 21.0–28.8 | 0.609 |
| Bilobar disease | 52 | 26.3 | 21.5–31.1 |