Risk factors for local recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE).

Purpose: To identify the risk factors for local recurrence in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE).

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, 35 patients (27 males, 8 females; median age 73 years) with 116 tumors (median size 14 mm) treated with DEB-TACE from May 2014 to September 2018 were evaluated. Age, sex, etiology, Child-Pugh class, alpha-fetoprotein, des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin, previous conventional TACE, tumor location, tumor size, tumor number, contact with the liver surface, level of embolization, corona enhancement on CT during hepatic arteriography, vascular lakes, additional embolization with gelatin sponge particles, and supplying vessels on digital subtraction angiography (DSA) after embolization were analyzed.

Results: Univariate analysis showed that advanced age, female, large tumor, contact with the liver surface, and residual supplying vessels were significant risk factors for local recurrence (p = 0.012, 0.0013, 0.0023, 0.025, and < 0.001, respectively). On multivariate logistic analysis, large tumor, contact with the liver surface, and residual supplying vessels on DSA were significant risk factors for local recurrence (p = 0.0026, 0.038, and < 0.001, respectively).

Conclusion: Large tumor size, contact with the liver surface, and residual supplying vessels on DSA were significant risk factors associated with local recurrence after DEB-TACE for HCC.