Prognosis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma or mixed hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma undergoing liver transplantation

Abstract

Cholangiocarcinoma (CC) is the most common of tumors of the biliary tree, according to its location is classified as intrahepatic, perihilar, and distal.  Intrahepatic CC (ICC) constitutes about 5-10% of all CC. Although rare, its incidence has been increasing in several parts of the world. The mixed tumor hepatocellular carcinoma/cholangiocarcinoma (HCC-CC), which is also rare, presents histological findings of both hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and iCC in the same nodule. Patients with a presumptive diagnosis of HCC on imaging tests undergo liver transplantation when, in fact, they have iCC or HCC-CC. A consensus meeting of the 2014 European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) and the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD) contraindicated liver transplantation (LT) in patients with iCC or HCC-CC.  However, recent studies suggest that careful selection of patients with very early iCC have similar survival rates to patients transplanted by HCC, suggesting that early iCC patients should be considered for liver transplantation. Similar results were obtained in patients with HCC-CC; however, it would seem that the cutoff could be extended to 5 cm considering other post-LT variables

DOI:https://doi.org/10.56238/globalhealthprespesc-035