Role of Choline PET/CT in Predicting Survival in Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma

What is the Prognostic Value of ¹¹C-choline PET/CT in Patients Undergoing Hepatectomy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma?

¹¹C-choline positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has been used in patients with some types of solid cancers, but few data are available in patients undergoing hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aim of this study was to analyze the prognostic value of metabolic imaging data by using ¹¹C-choline PET/CT in patients with HCC before hepatectomy.

Our prospectively maintained liver unit database was queried for patients with HCC preoperatively staged with ¹¹C-choline PET/CT. This metabolic imaging modality was performed in addition to standard abdominal CT or magnetic resonance imaging. Several PET/CT parameters were recorded and analyzed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify whether those PET/CT parameters could be predictors of overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) of HCC patients.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Any patient with HCC candidate to surgical resection preoperatively staged with ¹¹C-choline PET/CT

Exclusion Criteria:

• R2 resection;
• Intraoperative use of RFA/MWI
• Postoperative death (90-days)