Surgical and Oncological Outcomes of Hepatic Resection for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Report from a Low Volume Centre in a Developing Country.

Objective: To review the surgical and oncological outcomes of patients who underwent hepatic resection for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Study Design: Cohort study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Department of Surgery of the Aga Khan University Hospital Karachi, from 2008 to 2019.

Methodology: Consecutive patients who underwent hepatic resection for HCC at the Hospital were included. The data were collected and analysed on aspects including demographics, liver function status, tumour characteristics, perioperative management, and surgical and oncological outcomes. Survival analyses were performed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and log-rank test was applied to determine the influence of variables on overall and disease-free survival.

Results: A total of 59 patients underwent hepatic resection for HCC during the study period including 38(64%) males. The majority of the patients had a single lesion (88%), unilobar disease (95%), underlying cirrhosis (75%) and BCLC stage B (73%). Major hepatic resection was performed in 27(46%) patients. The mean duration of surgery was 288+101 minutes and the mean estimated blood loss was 986+637 mls. Postoperative complications developed in 22(37%) patients including surgical complications in 11(19%), liver decompensation in 4(7%) and systemic complications in 9(15%) patients. The overall 30-day mortality was 7%. With a mean follow-up of 2.8 years, disease recurrence was documented in 25(42%) patients and the median overall survival was 45 months.

Conclusion: Hepatic resection for HCC is an effective treatment option in this setup. Despite low volumes, surgical and oncological outcomes of hepatic resection for HCC were comparable to the international standards.

Key Words: Hepatocellular carcinoma, Liver resection, Cirrhosis.