TY - JOUR
T1 - Extent of portal vein tumour thrombosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma
T2 - The more, the worse?
AU - Mähringer-Kunz, Aline
AU - Steinle, Verena
AU - Düber, Christoph
AU - Weinmann, Arndt
AU - Koch, Sandra
AU - Schmidtmann, Irene
AU - Schotten, Sebastian
AU - Hinrichs, Jan B.
AU - Graafen, Dirk
AU - Pinto dos Santos, Daniel
AU - Galle, Peter R.
AU - Kloeckner, Roman
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd
PY - 2019/2
Y1 - 2019/2
N2 - Background & Aims: Portal vein tumour thrombosis (PVTT) has a significant impact on the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The degree of PVTT varies from sub-/segmental invasion to complete occlusion of the main trunk. Aim of this study was to evaluate whether the degree of PVTT correlates with prognosis. Methods: A total of 1317 patients with HCC treated at our tertiary referral centre between January 2005 and December 2016 were included. PVTT was diagnosed by contrast-enhanced computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. The extent of PVTT was documented according to the Liver Cancer Study Group of Japan classification: Vp0 = no PVTT, Vp1 = segmental portal vein invasion, Vp2 = right anterior/posterior portal vein, Vp3 = right/left portal vein and Vp4 = main trunk. Median overall survival (OS) was calculated for each group. Results: Portal vein tumour thrombosis was present in 484 (36.8%) patients. Median OS without PVTT was 35.7 months, significantly longer than in patients with PVTT (7.2 months, P < 0.001). The patients with PVTT were subclassified as follows: 103 Vp1, 87 Vp2, 143 Vp3 and 151 Vp4. The corresponding median OS yielded 14.6, 9.4, 5.8 and 4.8 months for Vp1-Vp4, respectively (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Portal vein tumour thrombosis in patients with HCC is associated with a dismal prognosis. The results indicate an association between the extent of PVTT and OS. However, the extent of PVTT is not that decisive, as even minor PVTT leads to a very poor prognosis. Therefore, meticulous evaluation of cross-sectional imaging is crucial for the clinical management of patients with HCC.
AB - Background & Aims: Portal vein tumour thrombosis (PVTT) has a significant impact on the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The degree of PVTT varies from sub-/segmental invasion to complete occlusion of the main trunk. Aim of this study was to evaluate whether the degree of PVTT correlates with prognosis. Methods: A total of 1317 patients with HCC treated at our tertiary referral centre between January 2005 and December 2016 were included. PVTT was diagnosed by contrast-enhanced computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. The extent of PVTT was documented according to the Liver Cancer Study Group of Japan classification: Vp0 = no PVTT, Vp1 = segmental portal vein invasion, Vp2 = right anterior/posterior portal vein, Vp3 = right/left portal vein and Vp4 = main trunk. Median overall survival (OS) was calculated for each group. Results: Portal vein tumour thrombosis was present in 484 (36.8%) patients. Median OS without PVTT was 35.7 months, significantly longer than in patients with PVTT (7.2 months, P < 0.001). The patients with PVTT were subclassified as follows: 103 Vp1, 87 Vp2, 143 Vp3 and 151 Vp4. The corresponding median OS yielded 14.6, 9.4, 5.8 and 4.8 months for Vp1-Vp4, respectively (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Portal vein tumour thrombosis in patients with HCC is associated with a dismal prognosis. The results indicate an association between the extent of PVTT and OS. However, the extent of PVTT is not that decisive, as even minor PVTT leads to a very poor prognosis. Therefore, meticulous evaluation of cross-sectional imaging is crucial for the clinical management of patients with HCC.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85056355510&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/liv.13988
DO - 10.1111/liv.13988
M3 - Journal articles
C2 - 30318826
AN - SCOPUS:85056355510
SN - 1478-3223
VL - 39
SP - 324
EP - 331
JO - Liver International
JF - Liver International
IS - 2
ER -
