Microvascular invasion guiding selection of candidates for combination treatment with sorafenib and TACE for intermediate recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma.

105 Background: To investigate the role of sorafenib combined with transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for the treatment of intermediate recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (rHCC) after initial hepatectomy and whether the status of microvascular invasion (MVI) could help screen out the appropriate candidates for the combination treatment. Methods: The study was approved by the ethics committee of two tertiary medical centers in China. From Jan 2010 to Dec 2016, 260 consecutive patients with intermediate rHCC after initial hepatectomy who underwent combination treatment or TACE were enrolled. Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were compared between these two treatments according to MVI status. Results: The 1-, 3-, 5-year OS (77.1% vs. 62.0%, 49.3% vs. 35.2%, 38.9% vs. 20.5%, P = 0.011) and PFS (74.2% vs. 56.5%, 37.5% vs. 18.7%, 37.5% vs. 18.7%, P = 0.003) rates were significantly higher in the combination group than those in the TACE group for intermediate rHCC. For MVI-positive patients, the median OS (17.2 months vs. 12.1 months, P = 0.024) and PFS (17.0 months vs. 11.0 months, P = 0.022) after combination treatment (n = 55) were significantly longer than those after TACE alone (n = 72). For MVI-negative patients, the median OS (42.7 months vs. 32.6 months, P = 0.247) and PFS (24.6 months vs. 17.2 months, P = 0.113) were comparable between combination therapy (n = 73) and TACE alone (n = 60). Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor number, MVI status and treatment allocation were significant predictors of OS and PFS, while the tumor size was another prognostic factor for PFS. Conclusions: Patients with intermediate rHCC can benefit from sorafenib plus TACE treatment, while MVI-positive patients were good candidates for combination treatment.