Table 4.
Cox regression analysis of baseline predictors of time-to-extrahepatic recurrence after hepatectomy
| Variable | Extrahepatic relapse event, n (%) | Unadjusted hazard ratio (95% CI) | p value | Adjusted hazard ratio*(95% CI) | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male gender | 89 (78.1) | 0.741 (0.475–1.154) | 0.185 | 0.835 (0.530–1.317) | 0.438 |
| Age >50 years | 79 (69.3) | 0.870 (0.584–1.297) | 0.495 | ||
| HBV infection | 93 (81.6) | 0.721 (0.449–1.159) | 0.177 | 0.813 (0.497–1.331) | 0.411 |
| Serum AST, IU/L | |||||
| ≤40 | 58 (50.9) | 1.0 (Ref) | 0.521 | ||
| 41–80 | 40 (35.1) | 1.106 (0.739–1.655) | 0.623 | ||
| >80 | 16 (14.0) | 1.376 (0.791–2.395) | 0.258 | ||
| Serum ALT, IU/L | |||||
| ≤40 | 73 (64.0) | 1.0 (Ref) | 0.720 | ||
| 41–80 | 29 (25.4) | 0.909 (0.591–1.397) | 0.662 | ||
| >80 | 12 (10.5) | 1.199 (0.651–2.207) | 0.561 | ||
| Platelet count <100K/mm3 | 10 (8.8) | 0.591 (0.309–1.132) | 0.113 | 0.982 (0.498–1.936) | 0.959 |
| Serum AFP ≥200 ng/mL | 52 (45.6) | 2.554 (1.765–3.696) | <0.001 | 1.621 (1.080–2.431) | 0.020 |
| Maximal tumor diameter, cm | |||||
| <3 | 22 (19.3) | 1.0 (Ref) | <0.001 | 1.0 (Ref) | <0.001 |
| 3–5 | 39 (34.2) | 2.079 (1.233–3.508) | 0.006 | 1.597 (0.935–2.727) | 0.087 |
| >5 | 53 (46.5) | 6.119 (3.707–10.099) | <0.001 | 3.379 (1.915–5.962) | <0.001 |
| Tumor multiplicity | 14 (12.3) | 1.109 (0.634–1.940) | 0.717 | ||
| Microvascular invasion | 49 (43.0) | 4.057 (2.789–5.903) | <0.001 | 2.656 (1.768–3.990) | <0.001 |
| Capsular invasion | 14 (12.3) | 1.742 (0.995–3.050) | 0.052 | 1.513 (0.858–2.668) | 0.153 |
| Moderately or poorly differentiated tumor | 50 (43.9) | 1.847 (1.275–2.674) | 0.001 | 1.399 (0.943–2.075) | 0.095 |
| METAVIR fibrosis stage | |||||
| F0 | 8 (7.0) | 1.0 (Ref) | 0.007 | 1.0 (Ref) | 0.235 |
| F1 | 22 (19.3) | 0.885 (0.394–1.988) | 0.767 | 0.963 (0.416–2.228) | 0.930 |
| F2 | 27 (23.7) | 1.047 (0.476–2.306) | 0.908 | 1.349 (0.593–3.067) | 0.475 |
| F3 | 3 (2.6) | 0.537 (0.142–2.023) | 0.358 | 0.722 (0.186–2.803) | 0.638 |
| F4 | 54 (47.4) | 0.482 (0.229–1.014) | 0.055 | 0.763 (0.341–1.706) | 0.510 |
CI, confidence interval; HBV, hepatitis B virus; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AFP, alpha-fetoprotein.
*
Adjusted for male gender, HBV infection, platelet count, serum AFP level, maximal tumor diameter, microvascular invasion, capsular invasion, moderately or poorly differentiated tumor, and METAVIR fibrosis stage, which were variables meeting a prechosen p value (i.e., <0.2) in univariate analyses for time-to-extrahepatic recurrence.