Staged hepatectomy is a promising strategy for curative resection of advanced colorectal liver metastasis (CRLM) to prevent inadequate future remnant liver (FRL). However, the selection criteria for conventional two-stage hepatectomy (cTSH) and associating liver partitioning and portal vein ligation for staged hepatectomy (ALPPS) remain unclear. This study aimed to propose a selection criterion for determining the optimal staged hepatectomy for patients with advanced CRLM. A selection criterion based on the degree of metastatic tumors within the FRL was established to determine staged hepatectomy approaches. Generally, ALPPS is recommended for patients with ≤3 metastatic nodules and whose nodules do not measure >3 cm in the FRL. cTSH is performed for patients whose tumor burden in FRL beyond the selection criteria. Data of 37 patients who underwent staged hepatectomy and curative intent of CRLM were analyzed. The clinical characteristics and outcomes of the two approaches were compared. Overall, cTSH and ALPPS were performed for 27 (73.0%) and 10 (27.0%) patients, respectively. Of those, 20 patients in the cTSH group and all patients in the ALPPS group had completed staged hepatectomy. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 91.6%, 62.4%, and 45.4% for all patients, respectively. The outcomes of patients who had successfully completed the staged hepatectomy were significantly better than those of other patients who failed to achieve staged hepatectomy. However, no significant difference was observed in the overall survival of patients who underwent staged hepatectomy between the two groups, but those in the ALPPS group had 100% survival at the end of this study. The individualized selection criteria based on tumor burden in the FRL that could balance the operative risk and oncologic outcome appear to be a promising strategy for achieving complete staged hepatectomy in patients with advanced CRLM.
Liver transplantation can prolong survival in patients with end-stage liver disease. We have proposed that the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score calculated on post-transplant day 7 has a great discriminative power for predicting 1-year mortality after liver transplantation. The Chronic Liver Failure-Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (CLIF-SOFA) score, a modified SOFA score, is a newly developed scoring system exclusively for patients with end-stage liver disease. This study was designed to compare the CLIF-SOFA score with other main scoring systems in outcome prediction for liver transplant patients.We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 323 patients who had received liver transplants in a tertiary care university hospital from October 2002 to December 2010. Demographic parameters and clinical characteristic variables were recorded on the first day of admission before transplantation and on post-transplantation days 1, 3, 7, and 14.The overall 1-year survival rate was 78.3% (253/323). Liver diseases were mostly attributed to hepatitis B virus infection (34%). The CLIF-SOFA score had better discriminatory power than the Child-Pugh points, Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score, RIFLE (risk of renal dysfunction, injury to the kidney, failure of the kidney, loss of kidney function, and end-stage kidney disease) criteria, and SOFA score. The AUROC curves were highest for CLIF-SOFA score on post-liver transplant day 7 for predicting 1-year mortality. The cumulative survival rates differed significantly for patients with a CLIF-SOFA score ≤8 and those with a CLIF-SOFA score >8 on post-liver transplant day 7.The CLIF-SOFA score can increase the prediction accuracy of prognosis after transplantation. Moreover, the CLIF-SOFA score on post-transplantation day 7 had the best discriminative power for predicting 1-year mortality after liver transplantation.
Background: Living donor liver transplantation is an option for effective treatment for patients with liver disease or a liver tumor. One disadvantage, however, is the risk of complications or death in a healthy donor. Thus, promoting the donor’s safety and well-being is a major goal of transplantation care. In this regard, more research on physical and psychological complications and adjustment among donors is needed. Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe the experiences of living liver donors, focusing on their perceptions of living liver transplantation and corresponding coping strategies. Methods: The data were analyzed using content analysis in this qualitative design. Results: Seven of 12 donors, all men, agreed to participate in the study. The core theme that emerged in regard to adjustment was “maintaining peace of mind.” In addition, there were 4 subthemes: (a) removing themselves from information, (b) viewing the surgery as common, (c) having overall confidence, and (d) assigning value to their decision. Discussion: Living donor liver transplantation is a treatment option that requires acceptance by both the donor and his or her family. The process is enormously stressful, and the living liver donor needs adjustment strategies to maintain his or her peace of mind throughout the process.
Abstract Immunotherapy is a novel treatment approach for cancers; however, its therapeutic effects are impeded by myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). This study aimed to determine how MDSCs are expanded in cancer hosts. MDSCs were positive for Gr-1 and CD11b. Hepa1-6 hepatoma cells, EL4 lymphoma cells, and mice bearing Hepa1-6 hepatoma or lymphoma were examined. Following the inoculation of Hepa1-6 cells into the flanks of mice, a linear correlation was evident between the frequency of MDSCs in the spleen and tumor sizes. MDSC numbers diminished gradually and returned to the normal level within 3 weeks if the tumors were excised. To identify the cytokines produced by tumor cells that allowed expansion of MDSCs, cytokines in Hepa1-6 cell culture medium and murine serum were examined using a cytokine array. Stem cell factor (SCF) was implicated as the relevant cytokine. When recombinant SCF was added to the spleen cell culture medium, MDSC expansion could occur. In the presence of c-kit blockade, this effect of SCF was partially reversed. In conclusion, MDSCs can be expanded in tumor cells in a process that involves SCF released by tumor cells.
Purpose: Liver resection is a primary curative treatment for early stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the outcomes are impeded by early tumor recurrence. This study aimed to establish a prediction model which could predict tumor recurrence outside the Milan criteria prior to liver resection.
Post-operative pulmonary complications significantly affect patient survival rates, but there is still no conclusive evidence regarding the effect of post-operative respiratory failure after liver transplantation on patient prognosis. This study aimed to predict the risk factors for post-operative respiratory failure (PRF) after liver transplantation and the impact on short-term survival rates.The retrospective observational cohort study was conducted in a twelve-bed adult surgical intensive care unit in northern Taiwan. The medical records of 147 liver transplant patients were reviewed from September 2002 to July 2007. Sixty-two experienced post-operative respiratory failure while the remaining 85 patients did not.Gender, age, etiology, disease history, pre-operative ventilator use, molecular adsorbent re-circulating system (MARS) use, source of organ transplantation, model for end-stage liver disease score (MELD) and Child-Turcotte-Pugh score calculated immediately before surgery were assessed for the two groups. The length of the intensive care unit stay, admission duration, and mortality within 30 days, 3 months, and 1 year were also evaluated. Using a logistic regression model, post-operative respiratory failure correlated with diabetes mellitus prior to liver transplantation, pre-operative impaired renal function, pre-operative ventilator use, pre-operative MARS use and deceased donor source of organ transplantation (p<0.05). Once liver transplant patients developed PRF, their length of ICU stay and admission duration were prolonged, significantly increasing their mortality and morbidity (p<0.001).The predictive pre-operative risk factors significantly influenced the occurrence of post-operative respiratory failure after liver transplantation.
ABO-incompatible (ABO-I) living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) can be performed successfully. However, anti-ABO isoagglutinin rebound may cause antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) and graft loss. The risk threshold of isoagglutinin rebound is still not defined. 76 ABO-I LDLT recipients were divided into group A (n = 56) with low isoagglutinin titers (<1:256), and group B (n = 20) with high isoagglutinin titers (≥1:256), at initial assessment for liver transplantation. The last 12 patients in group B received a modified desensitization regimen by adding bortezomib to deplete plasma cells. Six (10.7%) patients in group A and 10 (50.0%) patients in group B had postoperative isoagglutinin rebound (p < 0.001). Three patients (5.54%) in group A and two patients (10%) in group B developed clinical AMR (p = 0.602). The cutoff value of postoperative isoagglutinin rebound to cause clinical AMR was ≥1:1024. Among the 12 patients in group B with bortezomib administration, isoagglutinin rebounded up to 1:128 only, and no clinical AMR occurred. In conclusion, the patients with high isoagglutinin titers had a higher rate of postoperative isoagglutinin rebound. Isoagglutinin rebound ≥1:1024 is risky for developing clinical AMR. Adding bortezomib into the desensitization regimen may mitigate isoagglutinin rebound, and avoid clinical AMR.
Background: Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tend to be referred for liver transplantation (LT) at an early stage of cirrhosis, with lower pre-LT Model of End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores. We investigated the impact of high MELD scores on post-LT outcomes in patients with HCC and validated the prognostic significance of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR). Patients and Method: This retrospective single-center cohort study enrolled 230 patients with HCC who underwent LDLT from 2004−2019 in our institute. We defined a high MELD score as ≥20. Results: The MELD < 20 and MELD ≥ 20 groups comprised 205 and 25 cases, respectively. Although there was no significant difference in disease-free survival between the two groups (p = 0.629), the incidence of septic shock (p = 0.019) was significantly higher in the high MELD group. The one-, three-, and five-year overall survival rates were not significantly different between the two groups (p = 0.056). In univariate analysis, a high pre-LT NLR was associated with poorer survival in the high MELD group (p = 0.029, hazard ratio [HR]: 1.07, 90% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02−1.13). NLR cut-off values of ≥10.7 and <10.7 were predictive of mortality, with an AUC of 0.705 (90% CI: 0.532−0.879). The one-, three-, and five-year post-LT survival rates were significantly higher among the recipients with an NLR < 10.7 than those with an NLR ≥ 10.7 (p = 0.005). Conclusions: Pre-LT MELD score ≥ 20 was associated with a higher risk of developing post-LT septic shock and mortality. The pre-LT serum NLR is a useful predictive factor for clinical outcomes in patients with HCC with high MELD scores.
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