Table 1.
Demographics of the patients in the cohort and case groups
| Characteristic | Cohort group (n=1848) | Case group (n=13) | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (year) | 68.5 (9.4) | 71.2 (5.5) | 0.12 |
| Male | 1225 [67%] | 8 [62%] | 0.77 |
| Observation period (month) | 34.4 (24.3) | 50.0 (27.9) | 0.78 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 23.5 (3.6)† | 23.0 (2.3) | 0.47 |
| Alcohol intake (>50 g/day) | 482 [26] | 4 [31] | 0.75 |
| Initial therapy at our institution | 1121 [60%] | 8 [62%] | 0.78 |
| Initial regimen | |||
| PEIT/RFA | 1450 [78%] | 12 [92%] | 0.32 |
| TACE | 315 [17%] | 1 [8%] | 0.71 |
| Chemotherapy | 52 [3%] | 0 [0%] | 1 |
| Best supportive care | 40 [2%] | 0 [0%] | 1 |
| Radiation | 3 [0%] | 0 [0%] | 1 |
| Molecular targeted drug therapy | 1 [0%] | 0 [0%] | 1 |
| Maximum diameter of HCC (mm) | 27 (17)‡ | 24 (10) | 0.33 |
| No. of HCC lesions | 2.4 (2.9)§ | 1.9 (1.0) | 0.11 |
| Aspartate aminotransferase (IU) | 60 (40) | 70 (42) | 0.44 |
| Alanine aminotransferase (IU) | 53 (41) | 61 (44) | 0.50 |
| Total bilirubin (mg/dL) | 1.1 (1.3) | 0.9 (0.6) | 0.34 |
| Albumin (g/L) | 3.6 (0.5) | 3.6 (0.4) | 0.58 |
| HBs antigen positive | 245 [13%] | 1 [8%] | 1 |
| HCV antibody positive | 1290 [70%] | 10 [77%] | 0.77 |
| Non-B, non-C hepatitis | 313 [17%] | 1 [8%] | 0.71 |
| Ascites | 379 [21%] | 1 [8%] | 0.47 |
| Encephalopathy | 51 [3%] | 0 [0%] | 1 |
Results are given as the mean (standard deviation) or n [%]. HBs: Hepatitis B surface, HCC: Hepatocellular carcinoma, HCV: Hepatitis C virus, PEIT: Percutaneous ethanol injection therapy, RFA: Radiofrequency ablation, TACE: Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization. †Data unavailable in 30 cases (not included). ‡Unmeasurable in 27 cases with diffuse-type HCC (not included). §Uncountable in 38 cases and data unavailable in four cases (not included)