Abstract
We treated 375 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by percutaneous ethanol injection, hepatic resection and transcatheter arterial embolization between January 1984 and June 1989, and followed up those patients until July 1994. Percutaneous ethanol injection, hepatic resection and trans-catheter arterial embolization were independently introduced as initial treatment in 151, 63 and 168 patients with HCC, respectively. Among patients with HCC less than 20mm in diameter with well-preserved liver function, the survival rates after percutaneous ethanol injection and hepatic resection were 61% and 62% for 5-year survival, and 22% and 28% for 7-year survival. There was no significant difference in outcome. Among patients with HCC between 21 mm and 30 mm in diameter, however, those treated by percutaneous ethanol injection had a better outcome than those treated by transcatheter arterial embolization, but had a worse outcome than those who received hepatic resection. Investigation of patients who survived over 5 years led us to understand that early diagnosis of either a recurrence or a second new grough of HCC was an important prognostic factor after percutaneous ethanol injection.
