Long-term oncologic results of anatomic vs. parenchyma-sparing resection for hepatocellular carcinoma. A propensity score-matching analysis

Purpose: The extent of liver resection for the optimal treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is debated. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of anatomic resection (AR) vs. parenchyma-sparing resection (PSR) on disease recurrence and patient survival. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with HCC who underwent liver resection from January 2001 to August 2015. Patients receiving AR or PSR were compared by a propensity score analysis (PSA) (caliper = 0.1). The primary outcomes were disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rates, and assessed by the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: 455 consecutive patients were evaluated. After PSA 354 patient were studied (177 pairs for each group). The median follow-up time was 28.2 months. The median OS was 47.5 months (95% CI: 30.0–65.9) for AR and 56.5 months (95% CI 33.2–79.6) for PSR (p = 0.169). The median DFS was 29.2 months (95% CI 17.6–40.8) for AR and 24.8 months (95% CI: 15.2–34.2) for PSR (p = 0.337). The multivariate regression model showed that cirrhosis (HR 2.85, 95% CI: 1.53–5.32; p = 0.001), BCLC grade B (HR 4.15, 95% CI: 1.33–12.95; p = 0.014), microvascular invasion (HR 1.55, 95% CI: 1.03–2.31; p = 0.033), presence of satellitosis (HR 1.94, 95% CI: 1.25–3.01; p = 0.003), severe complications (HR 6.09, 95% CI: 2.26–16.40; p > 0.001) were independently associated with poor long-term oncologic outcomes. Conclusions: The extent of resection did not significantly affect overall and disease-free survival while tumor characteristics and underlying liver function appeared significant determinants.