Table 1. Baseline patient characteristics.
| Variable | TACE group (n=98) | Non-TACE group (n=49) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age (years) | 52 [42–62] | 53 [47–63] | 0.108 |
| Sex, n (%) | 0.150 | ||
| Male | 87 (88.8) | 47 (95.9) | |
| Female | 11 (11.2) | 2 (4.1) | |
| ECOG-PS, n (%) | 0.636 | ||
| 0 | 42 (42.9) | 21 (36.7) | |
| 1 | 56 (57.1) | 28 (63.3) | |
| Hepatitis B surface antigen, n (%) | 0.862 | ||
| Positive | 85 (86.7) | 43 (87.8) | |
| Negative | 13 (13.3) | 6 (12.2) | |
| Median intrahepatic tumor size (cm) | 8.8 [6.4–12.4] | 7.8 [3.8–12.6] | 0.209 |
| No. of intrahepatic tumors, n (%) | 0.692 | ||
| ≤3 | 27 (27.6) | 12 (24.5) | |
| >3 | 71 (72.4) | 37 (75.5) | |
| Tumor distribution, n (%) | 0.806 | ||
| Unilobar | 34 (34.7) | 16 (32.7) | |
| Bilobar | 64 (65.3) | 33 (67.3) | |
| Main portal vein tumor thrombus, n (%) | 0.744 | ||
| Yes | 14 (14.3) | 8 (16.3) | |
| No | 84 (85.7) | 41 (83.7) | |
| Macrovascular invasion†, n (%) | 0.098 | ||
| Yes | 73 (74.5) | 30 (61.2) | |
| No | 25 (25.5) | 19 (38.8) | |
| Extrahepatic metastasis, n (%) | 0.726 | ||
| Yes | 49 (50.0) | 26 (53.1) | |
| No | 49 (50.0) | 23 (46.9) | |
| Ascites, n (%) | 0.468 | ||
| Yes | 34 (34.7) | 20 (40.8) | |
| No | 64 (65.3) | 29 (59.2) | |
| AFP (ng/mL), n (%) | 0.554 | ||
| >200 | 59 (60.2) | 27 (55.1) | |
| ≤200 | 39 (39.8) | 22 (44.9) | |
| Child-Pugh liver function class, n (%) | 0.234 | ||
| A5–A6 | 75 (76.5) | 33 (67.3) | |
| B7–B9 | 23 (23.5) | 16 (32.7) | |
| BCLC stage, n (%) | 0.728 | ||
| B | 12 (12.2) | 7 (14.3) | |
| C | 86 (87.8) | 42 (85.7) | |
| History of locoregional therapy, n (%) | 69 (70.4) | 40 (81.6) | 0.143 |
| Median time from initial diagnosis (months) | 5.3 [1.4–11.2] | 7.7 [1.4–12.65] | 0.301 |
Data are shown as median [interquartile range] or n (%). †, some patients had hepatic venous invasion and no portal vein invasion (5 in the TACE group and 1 in the non-TACE group). ECOG-PS, Eastern Collaborative Oncology Group performance status; AFP, α-fetoprotein; BCLC, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer; TACE, transarterial chemoembolization. Non-TACE group refers to patients who received systemic combination therapy without TACE.