Liver Resection for Hepatocellular Carcinoma in the Elderly

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Abstract
Objective: To estimate the effectiveness of hepatic resection on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the elderly. Design: Comparison with younger patients. Setting: A municipal hospital and a large university hospital in Japan. Patients: The study included 39 patients (age ≥70 years [the elderly group]) and 229 patients (age P=.016). Main Outcome Measures: Morbidity and survival following operation and the pathological features of HCC. Results: The incidence of postoperative hepatic failure was higher in the elderly group (10% vs 2%; P=.018). However, the incidence of operative death in the elderly group (5% vs 1%) as well as the incidence of other postoperative complications and rates of long-term survival (75.9% vs 51.6% at 5 years) and disease-free survival (30.4% vs 31.0% at 5 years) were similar to those in the younger group. The pathological features of HCC were identical between the two groups. Conclusion: The outcome of surgical treatment of HCC in the elderly group was satisfactory when compared with that in the younger group. (Arch Surg. 1994;129:846-850)