Impact of renal insufficiency on patients with hepatocellular carcinoma undergoing radiofrequency ablation

Background and AimRenal insufficiency (RI) is commonly seen in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We aimed to investigate the impact of RI on the long-term survival of HCC patients undergoing radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and to determine the optimal staging strategy for these patients. MethodsRI was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate <60mL/min/1.73m(2). A total of 123 and 344 patients with and without RI undergoing RFA, respectively, were enrolled. A one-to-one propensity score matching analysis with preset caliper width was performed. The prognostic ability of four currently used staging systems was compared by the Akaike information criterion (AIC). ResultsHCC patients with RI undergoing RFA were older (P<0.001) and had significantly different baseline characteristics. Of all patients, RI was significantly associated with a decreased long-term survival (P=0.03). After matching in the propensity model, the baseline characteristics were similar between patients with (n=92) and without (n=92) RI. In the propensity model, RI was not significantly associated with a shortened survival (P=0.273). In the Cox multivariate analysis, Child-Turcotte-Pugh class B or C was identified as the only independent predictor of poor prognosis. Among patients with RI undergoing RFA, the Taipei Integrated Scoring (TIS) system provided the highest homogeneity and lowest AIC value among the currently used staging systems. ConclusionsThe long-term survival of HCC patients undergoing RFA is not affected by RI. The TIS staging system may provide a better prognostic prediction for HCC patients with RI undergoing RFA.