Table 1.
Baseline data of the groups.
| cTACE | NBCA-TACE | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of patients | 33 | 47 | |
| Male (%) | 26 (78.79) | 41 (87.23) | 0.365 |
| Age (mean ± sd) | 56.4 ± 10.3 | 58.3 ± 8.9 | 0.727 |
| Etiology of cirrhosis | |||
| Hepatitis B (%) | 4 (12.12) | 7 (14.89) | 1.000 |
| Hepatitis C (%) | 13 (39.39) | 34 (72.34) | 0.005 |
| Alcohol (%) | 22 (66.67) | 34 (72.34) | 0.626 |
| Other causes (%) | 1 (3.03) | 0 (0.00) | 0.412 |
| Aim of TACE | |||
| Maintenance in Milan’s criteria (%) | 13 (39.39) | 24 (51.06) | 0.212 |
| Downstaging (%) | 13 (39.39) | 10 (21.28) | |
| Palliative (%) | 7 (21.21) | 13 (27.66) | |
| Performance of any curative treatment (%) | 10 (30.30) | 19 (40.43) | 0.479 |
| Performance of new cTACE or NBCA-TACE (%) | 16 (48.49) | 17 (36.17) | 0.192 |
| cTACE or NBCA-TACE per patient (mean ± sd) | 1.67 ± 0.89 | 1.55 ± 0.90 | 0.580 |
| Laboratory tests | |||
| Total bilirubin, in mg/dL (mean ± sd) | 1.93 ± 1.52 | 1.74 ± 0.88 | 0.117 |
| Albumin, in g/L (mean ± sd) | 3.68 ± 0.43 | 3.53 ± 0.75 | 0.122 |
| INR (mean ± sd) | 1.24 ± 0.19 | 1.22 ± 0.15 | 0.163 |
| Alpha-fetoprotein | 291.6 ± 731.0 | 337.4 ± 859.8 | 0.606 |
| Serum creatinine, in mg/dL (mean ± sd) | 0.99 ± 0.32 | 0.91 ± 0.25 | 0.085 |
| Serum sodium, in mmol/L (mean ± sd) | 139.6 ± 3.7 | 140,2 ± 3.0 | 0.422 |
| Sum of the largest diameter of all lesions identified on the basal MDCT or MRI, in cm (mean ± sd) | 6.6 ± 3.8 | 5.3 ± 2.6 | 0.185 |
| Largest diameter of the biggest lesion on the basal MDCT or MRI, in cm | |||
| < 2.0 cm (%) | 2 (6.06) | 3 (6.38) | 0.207 |
| > 2.0 cm < 3.0 cm (%) | 5 (15.15) | 14 (29.79) | |
| > 3.0 cm < 5.0 cm (%) | 13 (39.39) | 16 (34.04) | |
| > 5.0 cm (%) | 13 (39.39) | 14 (29.79) | |
| Classification in number and aspect | |||
| Uninodular (%) | 20 (60.61) | 31 (65.96) | 0.671 |
| Multinodular (%) | 12 (36.36) | 14 (29.79) | |
| Infiltrative (%) | 1 (3.03) | 2 (4.26) | |
| Involved hepatic segments | |||
| I (%) | 1 (3.03) | 0 (0.00) | 0.412 |
| II (%) | 4 (12.12) | 7 (14.89) | 1.000 |
| III (%) | 5 (15.15) | 7 (14.89) | 1.000 |
| IVa (%) | 10 (30.30) | 13 (27.66) | 0.807 |
| IVb (%) | 6 (18.18) | 5 (10.64) | 0.347 |
| V (%) | 9 (27.27) | 13 (27.66) | 1.000 |
| VI (%) | 12 (36.36) | 20 (42.55) | 0.647 |
| VII (%) | 11 (33.33) | 14 (29.79) | 0.809 |
| VIII (%) | 20 (60.61) | 23 (48.94) | 0.365 |
| Child-Turcotte-Pugh | |||
| A (%) | 15 (45.45) | 26 (55.32) | 0.452 |
| B (%) | 18 (54.55) | 20 (42.55) | |
| C (%) | 0 (0.00) | 1 (2.13) | |
| BCLC | |||
| 0 (%) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0.355 |
| A (%) | 19 (57.58) | 31 (65.96) | |
| B (%) | 11 (33.33) | 15 (31.92) | |
| C (%) | 2 (6.06) | 0 (0.00) | |
| D (%) | 1 (3.03) | 1 (2.13) | |
| MELD (mean ± sd) | 11.55 ± 3.05 | 10.96 ± 2.77 | 0.565 |
| Extension of embolization (% of estimated liver volume) | |||
| 0 to 25 (%) | 8 (24.24) | 13 (27.66) | 0.294 |
| 25 to 50 (%) | 17 (51.52) | 29 (61.70) | |
| 50 to 75 (%) | 8 (24.24) | 4 (8.51) | |
| 75 to 100 (%) | 0 (0.00) | 1 (2.13) | |
| Technical success (%) | 30 (90.91) | 42 (89.36) | 1.000 |
sd: standard deviation.