A Retrospective Cohort Analysis of Transarterial Chemoembolization for Hepatocellular Cancer at a Tertiary Center in Switzerland

Background/Objectives: International guidelines recommend transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for intermediate-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, it is used outside these recommendations and has proven beneficial in prolonging survival. Since the role of TACE outside BCLC stage B is unclear, the present study analyzed the results of TACE performed at a tertiary center in Switzerland for different treatment groups, and aims to highlight the treatment outcomes for these groups. Methods: This retrospective cohort study includes 101 HCC patients undergoing TACE at our center. Patients were further subdivided into groups according to therapy combinations (therapies applied before and after index TACE). Kaplan-Meier survival curves were calculated for the Barcelona Center for Liver Cancer (BCLC) subgroups. Results: After TACE, the median survival was 28.1 months for BCLC 0, 31.5 months for BCLC A, 20.5 months for BCLC B, 10.8 for BCLC C, and 7.5 months for BCLC D. A lesion size larger than 55 mm was negatively associated with survival (HR 2.8, 95% CI 1.15-6.78). Complications occurred after TACE procedures: Clavien-Dindo I + II = 30, Clavien-Dindo > 3 = 2. Conclusions: TACE was performed in a substantial part of our cohort outside of routinely used treatment guidelines. The combination of the survival data and complication rate in these patients suggests it was a safe and beneficial strategy. Furthermore, our data show that in our cohort, the survival benefit associated with TACE was restricted to patients with a lesion size smaller than 55 mm.