Clinical features and prognosis of elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma not indicated for surgical resection

• Published in: Geriatrics & gerontology international Vol. 17; no. 2; pp. 189 - 201
• Main Authors: Kinoshita, Akiyoshi, Koike, Kazuhiko, Nishino, Hirokazu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.02.2017
• Subjects: Age Factors; Aged; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - diagnosis; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - mortality; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - therapy; clinical features; Combined Modality Therapy; elderly patients; Gerontology; hepatocellular carcinoma; Humans; Liver cancer; Liver Neoplasms - diagnosis; Liver Neoplasms - mortality; Liver Neoplasms - therapy; Medical prognosis; Middle Aged; non‐surgical treatment; Prognosis; elderly patients; prognosis; clinical features; hepatocellular carcinoma; non-surgical treatment
• ISSN: 1444-1586; 1447-0594
• DOI: 10.1111/ggi.12747

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major health problem worldwide. The average life expectancy during the 20th century has increased in many parts of the world, and therefore the opportunities to examine elderly HCC patients have significantly increased worldwide. Many elderly patients develop HCC with intermediate to advanced stages of disease at the initial diagnosis, and have more comorbidities and compromised liver regeneration compared with younger patients. These circumstances show that elderly patients with HCC are poorer candidates for surgical resection or transplantation. The aim of the present review was to focus on the clinical features and prognosis of elderly HCC patients not indicated for surgical resection including multimodal treatment. Although the chronological age of 60 or 65 years as the definition of an elderly person is accepted in most countries, many studies in our review article define elderly as those aged 75 years or older. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 189–201.