Table 3.
Comparison between patients with or without further recurrence after 5 recurrence-free years (n=487)
| Variable | No recurrence until end of follow-up (n=360) | Recurrence after 5 years (n=127) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| At baseline | |||
| Male | 268 (74.4) | 106 (83.5) | 0.038 |
| Diabetes | 60 (16.7) | 23 (18.1) | 0.784 |
| Etiology | 0.303 | ||
| HBV* | 312 (86.7) | 105 (82.7) | |
| Others† | 48 (13.3) | 22 (17.3) | |
| Tumor number | 0.874 | ||
| Single | 338 (93.9) | 119 (93.7) | |
| Two | 21 (5.8) | 8 (6.3) | |
| Three | 1 (0.3) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Maximal tumor size (cm) | 0.758 | ||
| ≤2 | 156 (43.3) | 57 (44.9) | |
| >2 and ≤5 | 174 (48.3) | 62 (48.8) | |
| >5 | 30 (8.3) | 8 (6.3) | |
| Initial treatment | 0.001 | ||
| RFA | 94 (26.1) | 44 (34.6) | |
| Resection | 265 (73.6) | 78 (61.4) | |
| RFA and resection | 1 (0.3) | 5 (3.9) | |
| At 5 years since diagnosis | |||
| Age at 5-year | 58 (53–65) | 59 (54–66) | 0.270 |
| <60 | 197 (54.7) | 66 (52.0) | 0.592 |
| ≥60 | 163 (45.3) | 61 (48.0) | |
| 5-year ALBI grade | 0.054 | ||
| 1 | 340 (94.4) | 113 (89.0) | |
| 2 | 19 (5.3) | 14 (11.0) | |
| 3 | 1 (0.3) | 0 (0.0) | |
| 5-year FIB-4 score | <0.001 | ||
| <1.45 | 73 (20.3) | 16 (12.6) | |
| ≥1.45 and <3.25 | 221 (61.4) | 66 (52.0) | |
| ≥3.25 | 66 (18.3) | 45 (35.4) | |
| 5-year AFP (ng/mL) | 2.3 (1.7–3.5) | 3.4 (2.6–5.8) | <0.001 |
| <10 | 350 (97.2) | 108 (85.0) | <0.001 |
| ≥10 | 10 (2.8) | 19 (15.0) |
Values are presented as median (quartile) or number (%).
HBV, hepatitis B virus; RFA, radiofrequency ablation; ALBI, albumin-bilirubin; FIB-4 score, fibrosis-4 score; AFP, alpha-fetoprotein.
*
One case had both HBV and hepatitis C virus infection.
†
Includes hepatitis C, alcohol, and non-B non-C.