Prognosis following transcatheter arterial embolization for 121 patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma with or without a history of treatment

AIM: To retrospectively evaluate the prognosis of pa- tients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with or without a history of therapy for HCC following transcath- eter arterial embolization (TAE). METHODS: One hundred and twenty-one patients with HCC treated with TAE from 1992 to 2004 in our hospital were enrolled in this study. Eighty-four patients had a history of treatment for HCC, while 37 did not. At the time of entry, patients with extra-hepatic metastasis, portal vein tumor thrombosis, or Child-Pugh class C were excluded. TAE was repeated when recurrence of HCC was diagnosed by elevated tumor markers, or ultraso- nography or dynamic computed tomography fi ndings. RESULTS: Tumor size was larger and the number of tumors was fewer in patients without past treatment (P 100 ng/mL) were factors related to a poor prognosis in patients with a history of HCC. CONCLUSION: The prognosis following TAE is similar between HCC patients with and without past treatment. Early diagnosis of HCC or recurrent HCC and obtaining