Hepatic Oncology · Published 2025-07-24 · DOI 10.1080/20450923.2025.2530377
Aim Real-world outcomes in early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (eHCC) are not well characterized. We aimed to evaluate treatment patterns and long-term outcomes in patients with eHCC treated with resection or ablation in the United States.Materials and methods We conducted a retrospective study with Optum’s de-identified Market Clarity Data. Patient characteristics, treatment patterns, and overall survival (OS) were assessed in adults with eHCC treated with resection or ablation between July 2016 and March 2021.Results Of 649 patients who met inclusion criteria, 59.3%, 37.3%, and 3.4% underwent ablation only, resection only, or both, as their initial treatment, respectively. Median age was 64.0 years; most patients were male (72.9%) and White (65.5%). Subsequent treatment was received in 47.1% of patients. The median (quartile 1–3) time to first subsequent treatment was 216 (89.3–414.3) days. The most common subsequent treatments included embolization (22.7%) and ablation (15.6%). In total, 35.7% of patients died post-index. Median OS was 67.7 (95% CI: 56.4–not estimable) months. Estimated 24-month OS was 79.0% (95% CI: 75.0–82.0).Conclusions Our results highlight the need for post-treatment surveillance and the potential role for neoadjuvant and/or adjuvant treatments to improve outcomes in patients with eHCC treated with resection or ablation.
Abstract from DOAJ. Public domain (CC0 1.0).
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