Primary liver transplantation and salvage liver transplantation for patients with primary liver cancer

Abstract

Objective To compare long-term outcome of primary liver transplantation and salvage liver transplantation in treating patients with primary liver cancer, and discuss the clinical feasibility of salvage liver transplantation. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 1 420 patients with primary liver cancer, including 170 cases treated with salvage liver transplantation and 1 250 cases with direct liver transplantation from Transplantation Center of Tianjin First Center Hospital between June 2005 and March 2015. The survival curve and 1, 3, 5-year survival rates were also compared between the two groups. Results Postoperative 1, 3, 5-year survival rates were 77.2%, 59.4%, 54.6% in the primary liver transplantation group and 70.3%, 48.1%, 41.8% in the salvage liver transplantation group, respectively. Significant statistical differences were observed (all P<0.05). Conclusions Salvage liver transplantation resulted in lower long-term survival rates in salvage liver transplantation than primary liver transplantation. Nevertheless, as one of the major treatment options, salvage liver transplantation is feasible for patients with recurrent liver cancer. Key words: Liver cancer; Primary liver transplantation; Salvage liver transplantation; Liver transplantation