Table 6:
Frequencies of Ancillary Features by Reader among HCC versus non-HCC Malignancies with Interrater Reliability Analysis
| Major Feature | HCC (n = 105) |
Non-HCC Malignancy (n = 73) |
p value* | Interpretation | K Value† | Agreement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Favoring Malignancy, Not Specific for HCC | ||||||
| US visibility as discrete nodule** | … | … | … | … | … | … |
| R1 / R2 | 21 (20%) | 17 (23%) | 0.73 | No difference | … | … |
| Subthreshold growth | … | … | … | … | 0.40 (0.21-0.60) | Fair |
| R1 | 24 (23%) | 10 (14%) | 0.18 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 20 (19%) | 6 (8%) | 0.07 | No difference | … | … |
| Corona enhancement | … | … | … | … | 0.42 (0.10-0.74) | Moderate |
| R1 | 4 (4%) | 5 (7%) | 0.57 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 6 (6%) | 7 (10%) | 0.49 | No difference | … | … |
| Fat sparing in solid mass | … | … | … | … | 0.20 (−0.37-0.78) | Slight |
| R1 | 1 (1%) | 2 (3%) | 0.75 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 1 (1%) | 5 (7%) | 0.09 | No difference | … | … |
| Restricted diffusion | … | … | … | … | 0.41 (0.27-0.54) | Moderate |
| R1 | 17 (16%) | 29 (40%) | 0.007 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 43 (41%) | 43 (59%) | 0.03 | No difference | … | … |
| Mild-moderate T2 hyperintensity | … | … | … | … | 0.56 (0.44-0.68) | Moderate |
| R1 | 36 (34%) | 38 (52%) | 0.03 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 53 (50%) | 45 (62%) | 0.19 | No difference | … | … |
| Iron sparing in solid mass | … | … | … | … | 0.69 (0.42-0.96) | Substantial |
| R1 | 9 (10%) | 0 (25%) | 0.03 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 8 (8%) | 0 (11%) | 0.04 | No difference | … | … |
| Transitional phase hypointensity | … | … | … | … | 0.33 (0.08-0.58) | Fair |
| R1 | 12 (11%) | 2 (3%) | 0.07 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 16 (15%) | 10 (14%) | 0.94 | No difference | … | … |
| Hepatobiliary phase hypointensity | 0.59 (0.42-0.77) | Moderate | ||||
| R1 | 21 (20%) | 3 (4%) | 0.005 | Maybe more common among HCC | … | … |
| R2 | 19 (18%) | 12 (16%) | 0.93 | No difference | … | … |
| Favoring HCC in Particular | ||||||
| Nonenhancing “capsule” | … | … | … | … | 0.00 (−0.47-0.47) | Slight |
| R1 | 14 (13%) | 2 (3%) | 0.03 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 1.00 | No difference | … | … |
| Nodule-in-nodule architecture | … | … | … | … | −0.03 (−0.68-0.63) | None |
| R1 | 4 (4%) | 0 (0%) | 0.24 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 4 (4%) | 1 (1%) | 0.61 | No difference | … | … |
| Mosaic architecture | … | … | … | … | 0.47 (0.22-0.73) | Moderate |
| R1 | 17 (16%) | 3 (4%) | 0.02 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 9 (9%) | 2 (3%) | 0.20 | No difference | … | … |
| Fat in mass, more than adjacent liver | … | … | … | … | 0.57 (0.34-0.79) | Moderate |
| R1 | 17 (16%) | 4 (5%) | 0.05 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 10 (10%) | 2 (3%) | 0.14 | No difference | … | … |
| Blood products in mass | … | … | … | … | 0.53 (0.37-0.70) | Moderate |
| R1 | 21 (20%) | 5 (7%) | 0.03 | No difference | … | … |
| R2 | 38 (36%) | 4 (5%) | <0.001 | More common among HCC | … | … |
*
p values are based on results from Pearson χ2 or Fisher exact test; p < 0.005 represents a significant difference.
**
Data provided to reader, therefore interrater reliability not assessed.
***
Falls on the borderline of significance
†
Data in parentheses represent 95% confidence intervals.
Abbreviations: HCC – hepatocellular carcinoma; R1 – reader 1; R2 – reader 2; US – ultrasound