Table 2.
Tumor Characteristics and Treatment
| CTC ≥2 (N=15) | CTC <2 (N=73) | P | CTC ≥5 (N=8) | CTC <5 (N=80) | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largest tumor size, cm, mean ± SD | 9.8 ± 4.5 | 4.6 ± 3.9 | <0.01 | 10 ± 5.0 | 4.7 ± 4.1 | 0.02 |
| Multinodular tumor, n (%) | 11 (73%) | 22 (30%) | <0.01 | 6 (75%) | 27 (34%) | 0.02 |
| Bilobar disease, n (%) | 12 (80%) | 28 (38%) | <0.01 | 7 (88%) | 33 (41%) | <0.01 |
| AJCC/UICC T staging | 2 [2–2] | 2 [1–3] | 0.63 | 2 [2–3] | 2 [1–3] | 0.80 |
| Loco-regional lymph node invasion, n (%) | 11 (73%) | 26 (36%) | <0.01 | 5 (63%) | 32 (40%) | 0.22 |
| Distant extrahepatic metastasis, n (%) | 7 (47%) | 12 (16%) | 0.02 | 4 (50%) | 15 (19%) | 0.06 |
| AJCC/UICC TNM staging | 0.13 | 0.11 | ||||
| 1–2 | 3 (20%) | 29 (40%) | 1 (13%) | 31 (39%) | ||
| 3–4 | 12 (80%) | 44 (60%) | 7 (87%) | 49 (61%) | ||
| CA19-9 U/mL, median [IQR] | 579 [49–5336] | 112 [39–562] | 0.04 | 3510 [835–8667] | 112 [37–564] | <0.01 |
| CA 19-9>100 U/mL, n (%) | 11 (73%) | 39 (56%) | 0.20 | 7 (88%) | 43 (56%) | 0.06 |
| Treatment | 0.07 | 0.04 | ||||
| Surgical resection/OLT | 1 (7%) | 25 (34%) | 0 (0%) | 26 (33%) | ||
| * Locoregional treatment | 3 (20%) | 16 (22%) | 1 (12%) | 18 (22%) | ||
| Systemic chemotherapy | 8 (53%) | 27 (37%) | 5 (63%) | 30 (38%) | ||
| Best supportive care | 3 (20%) | 5 (7%) | 2 (25%) | 6 (7%) |
SD: Standard deviation
IQR: Interquartile range
OLT: orthotopic liver transplantation
AJCC/UICC; American Joint Committee on Cancer/Union for International Cancer Control
*
Locoregional treatment: TARE (n=9), TACE (n=2), and external beam radiation (n=8)