Table 1.
Baseline demographics and clinical characteristics of the three independent cohorts in the current study.
| Characteristics | Training cohort, n (%) | Validation cohort I, n (%) | Validation cohort II, n (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 372 (100.0) | 202(100.0) | 82(100.0) | |
| Age, years (median/IQR) | 52 (44-61) | 56(45-65) | 55(44-63) | |
| Gender | Male | 348 (93.5) | 176 (87.1) | 73(89.0) |
| Female | 24 (6.5) | 26 (12.9) | 9 (11.0) | |
| Ascites | Yes | 77 (20.7) | 113 (55.9) | 17(20.7) |
| No | 295 (79.3) | 89 (44.1) | 65 (79.3) | |
| Laboratory parameters (median/IQR) | ||||
| AFP, ng/mL | 277.39 (19.45-1000.00) | 1000 (22.78-1210.00) | 34.69 (8.28-1000.00) | |
| BUN, mmol/L | 5.05 (4.06-5.95) | 5.11 (3.99-7.14) | 4.47 (3.87-5.64) | |
| ALB, g/L | 38.70 (34.63-42.00) | 34.60 (29.55-38.80) | 36.75 (32.45-40.78) | |
| TBIL, μmol/L | 16.65 (12.20-25.23) | 31.05 (17.18-71.88) | 15.95 (11.93-24.28) | |
| ALT, U/L | 46.00 (33.00-70.75) | NA | 44.5 (31.75-68.75) | |
| AST, U/L | 55.00 (38.25-95.25) | 134 (72.00-228.00) | 53.5 (36.75-74.00) | |
| ALP, U/L | 107.00 (82.00-155.75) | 154 (100-235.75) | 108.5 (84.5-153.75) | |
| Child-Pugh grade | A | 286 (76.9) | 54 (26.7) | 79 (96.3) |
| B | 86 (23.1) | 100 (49.5) | 3 (3.7) | |
| C | 0 (0) | 48 (23.8) | 0 (0) | |
| NCCN-TNM stage (AJCC 7th) | I | 21 (5.6) | 20 (9.9) | 7 (8.5) |
| II | 67 (18.0) | 13 (6.4) | 20 (24.4) | |
| III | 213 (57.3) | 120 (59.4) | 29 (35.4) | |
| IV | 71 (19.1) | 49 (24.3) | 26 (31.7) | |
| T category (AJCC 7th) | T1 | 21 (5.6) | 21 (10.4) | 7 (8.5) |
| T2 | 70 (18.8) | 18 (8.9) | 21 (25.6) | |
| T3 | 126 (33.9) | 151 (74.8) | 43 (52.4) | |
| T4 | 155 (41.7) | 12 (5.9) | 11 (13.5) | |
| N category (AJCC 7th) | N0 | 301 (80.9) | 143 (70.8) | 61 (74.4) |
| N1 | 71 (19.1) | 59 (29.2) | 21 (25.6) | |
| M category (AJCC 7th) | M0 | 342 (91.9) | 156 (77.2) | 77 (93.9) |
| M1 | 30 (8.1) | 46 (22.8) | 5 (6.1) | |
| PVTT | Yes | 160 (43.0) | 143 (70.8) | 66 (80.5) |
| No | 212 (57.0) | 59 (29.2) | 16 (19.5) | |
| AAPR-TNM | 1 | 10 (2.7) | 4 (2.0) | 2 (2.5) |
| 2 | 38 (10.2) | 17 (8.4) | 11(13.4) | |
| 3 | 107 (28.8) | 22 (10.9) | 22 (26.8) | |
| 4 | 159 (42.7) | 116 (57.4) | 27 (32.9) | |
| 5 | 58 (15.6) | 43 (21.3) | 20 (24.4) | |
| CLIP | 0 | 56 (15.1) | 2 (1.0) | 12 (14.6) |
| 1 | 77 (20.7) | 15 (7.4) | 16 (19.5) | |
| 2 | 83 (22.3) | 26 (12.9) | 26 (31.7) | |
| 3 | 68 (18.3) | 39 (19.3) | 18 (22.0) | |
| 4 | 79 (21.2) | 52 (25.7) | 10 (12.2) | |
| 5 | 9 (2.4) | 51 (25.3) | 0 (0) | |
| 6 | 0 (0) | 17 (8.4) | 0 (0) | |
| AAPR-CLIP | 0 | 32 (8.6) | 1 (0.5) | 5 (6.1) |
| 1 | 81 (21.8) | 8 (4.0) | 11 (13.4) | |
| 2 | 61 (16.4) | 10 (5.0) | 18 (22.0) | |
| 3 | 71 (19.1) | 32 (15.8) | 26 (31.7) | |
| 4 | 74 (19.9) | 33 (16.3) | 13 (15.8) | |
| 5 | 53 (14.2) | 51 (25.2) | 9 (11.0) | |
| 6 | 0 (0) | 50 (24.8) | 0 (0) | |
| 7 | 0 (0) | 17 (8.4) | 0 (0) | |
| Survival rates | 3-month | 339 (91.1) | 86 (42.6) | 81 (98.8) |
| 6-month | 305 (82.0) | 43 (21.3) | 71 (86.6) | |
| 1-year | 255 (68.5) | 12 (5.9) | 61 (74.4) | |
| 2-year | 203 (54.6) | 3 (1.5) | 49 (59.8) | |
| 5-year | 95 (25.5) | 0 (0) | 19 (23.2) | |
HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; TACE: transcatheter arterial chemoembolization; IQR: interquartile range; AFP: alpha fetoprotein; BUN: blood urea nitrogen; ALB: albumin; TBIL: total bilirubin; ALT: alanine aminotransferase; AST: aspartate aminotransferase; ALP: alkaline phosphatase; AAPR: albumin-to-alkaline phosphatase ratio; PVTT: portal vein tumour thrombus; NCCN: The National Comprehensive Cancer Network; AJCC: The American Joint Committee on Cancer; TNM: tumour-node-metastasis; CLIP: Cancer of the Liver Italian Program.