Proton beam radiotherapy versus transarterial chemoembolization for hepatocellular carcinoma: Results of a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: This study compares survival rates, recurrence patterns, toxicity, and treatment cost in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with either transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) or proton beam radiotherapy (PBT). METHODS: Subjects with untreated HCC meeting Milan or San Francisco transplant criteria were recruited. Subjects were randomized to receive PBT (n = 36) or TACE (n = 40). Proton therapy was administered in 15 fractions over 3 weeks to a total dose of 70.2 Gy. TACE was repeated until complete or maximal response. The primary outcome measure was overall survival (OS). Secondary end points were progression-free survival (PFS), local control (LC), toxicity, and cost. RESULTS: Of the 76 randomized patients, 74 were assessed for outcome measures. The 2-year OS for PBT versus TACE was similar at 68%, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.54-0.86, and 65%, 95% CI, 0.52-0.83 (p = .80), however, median PFS was improved for PBT versus TACE (not reached vs. 12 months, p = .002). LC was improved with PBT versus TACE (hazard ratio, 5.64; 95% CI, 1.78-17.9, p = .003). Days of posttreatment hospitalization were 24 for PBT and 166 for TACE (p < .001). Total mean cost per patient for treatment and posttreatment care revealed a 28% cost savings for PBT. CONCLUSIONS: PBT and TACE yielded similar OS for treatment of HCC, but PFS and LC were improved with PBT compared to TACE. Patients treated with PBT required fewer courses of treatment, fewer posttreatment hospitalization days, and reduced cost of treatment compared to TACE. These data support the use of PBT as a viable treatment alternative to TACE for patients with HCC within transplant criteria.

Gastrointestinal side effects in liver transplant recipients taking enteric-coated mycophenolate sodium vs. mycophenolate mofetil.

In the setting of liver transplantation, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) may be used as an adjuvant therapy for immunosuppression to prevent graft rejection; however, its use may be limited due to severe gastrointestinal (GI) side effects. In contrast, enteric-coated mycophenolate sodium (EC-MPS) may be associated with less severe side effects and hence better tolerability. We compared the side effects of EC-MPS to MMF in liver transplant patients in a de novo study (Study I-randomized, prospective, double-blinded) and a conversion study (Study II). In both studies, the severity of GI symptoms was assessed at various time points using the Gastrointestinal Symptoms Rating Scale (GSRS) survey, a validated survey of GI symptoms (abdominal pain, reflux, indigestion, diarrhea, and constipation). In Study I, the symptoms of 30 recipients receiving EC-MPS (n = 15) were compared to 15 recipients receiving MMF. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) of the total GSRS scores and symptom syndrome subscores revealed no significant difference (p > 0.05) between the two medications over time. A conversion study (Study II) with 29 participants, however, showed that over time, all GI symptoms improved significantly (p < 0.001) when the patients were treated with EC-MPS instead of MMF.

A validated model for predicting outcome after liver transplantation: implications on transplanting the extremely sick.

Given the organ shortage, there is a need to optimize outcome after liver transplantation (LT). We defined posttransplant hospital length of stay > 60 days (LOS > 60) as a surrogate of suboptimal outcome. In the first phase of the study, a 'Study cohort' (SC) of 643 patients was used to identify risk factors and construct a mathematical model to identify recipients with anticipated inferior results. In the second phase, a cohort of 417 patients was used for validation of the model ['Validation Cohort' (VC)]. In the SC, 65 patients (10.1%) had LOS > 60 days. One- and 3-year patient/graft survival rates were 81.9%/76.1% and 73.4%/67.4%, respectively. Patient and graft survival rates of those with LOS > 60 days were inferior (P < 0.0001), while transplant cost was greater [3.42 relative units (RU) vs. 1 RU, P < 0.0001]. In a multivariable analysis, pretransplant dialysis (P < 0.001), mechanical ventilation (P < 0.015), MELD (P < 0.003), and age (P < 0.009) were predictors of LOS > 60 days [ROC curve - 0.75 (95% CI 0.70, 0.81)]. In the VC, 53 patients (12.7%) were expected to have adverse outcome by the model. These patients had longer LOS (P < 0.0001), higher cost (<0.0001), and inferior patient and graft survival (P < 0.007).

Pathways of psychosocial factors, stress, and health outcomes after liver transplantation.

The impact of stress and individual factors on health outcomes in general medicine and transplantation are well documented. Few researchers have investigated the complex relationships between these constructs. This longitudinal study assessed coping style, self-regulatory ability, hostility, and social support at baseline among a cohort of 130 adult liver transplant recipients at the Starzl Transplant Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and followed those subjects with interview and medical records data about personal and transplant-related stress, physical and mental health outcomes throughout the first post-transplant year. Results show a number of strong bidirectional relationships between coping style, self-regulatory ability, hostility, the caregiver relationship and family environment, personal and transplant-related stress over the second half of the first post-transplant year, and health (especially mental) outcomes at 12 months post-transplant. Stress mediates the relationship between psychosocial factors and mental health outcomes. The importance of those relationships to researchers and clinicians is discussed.

One thousand consecutive primary liver transplants under tacrolimus immunosuppression: a 17- to 20-year longitudinal follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Tacrolimus has proven to be a potent immunosuppressive agent in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The aim of this study is to examine its long-term efficacy and safety. METHODS AND RESULTS: One thousand consecutive primary OLTs performed between August 1989 and December 1992 and maintained under tacrolimus-based immunosuppression were followed up until January 2009. Patient and graft survivals with corresponding causes of death and retransplantation, maintenance immunosuppression, and adverse effects were examined. The study population includes 600 males and 400 females comprising 166 children, 630 adults, and 204 seniors. The mean follow-up was 17.83 (range, 16.1-19.50) years. The overall 20-year actuarial patient and graft survivals were 35.8% and 32.6%, respectively. At the last follow-up, 442 patients were alive; 133 (77.1%) children, 265 (34.5%) adults, and 44 (16.1%) seniors (P=0.0001). After the first post-OLT year, cardiopulmonary events, recurrence of primary disease, and malignancy were the main causes of death. Overall, 183 recipients underwent retransplants; mainly for primary nonfunction, hepatic artery thrombosis, and recurrent primary disease, 180 required dialysis, and 45 underwent kidney transplant. A total of 97.7% of the survivors were on tacrolimus and 26.2% were also receiving adjunctive immunosuppressants at the last follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The overall 20-year actuarial patient and graft survivals were 35.8% and 32.6%, respectively, with significantly better survival among children. Age-related complications, recurrence of primary disease, and malignancy were the major causes of late graft loss. Graft loss related to immunologic reasons was rare. The prevention of recurrent disease and newer immunosuppressive regimen will further improve these results.

Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis before liver transplantation does not affect patient survival.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is a devastating complication of cirrhosis with high mortality. The impact of a prior episode of SBP on the outcome of liver transplantation (LT) is not well known. We aimed to determine the short- and long-term morbidity and mortality of patients who received LT, with and without a history of SBP. METHODS: We reviewed the records of all adult patients who underwent LT at a single center between June 1999 and June 2009. Patients with SBP were compared with all other patients who underwent LT during the same time period, without prior episodes of SBP. RESULTS: A total of 1491 adult patients underwent LT in the study period; 80 (5.4%) had at least 1 episode of SBP before LT. The mean follow-up time for all patients in the study was just over 4 years. Patients in the SBP cohort were more likely to be male (74%) and to have alcoholic liver disease. Patients with SBP had higher Child-Pugh and model for end-stage liver disease scores at the time of transplantation compared with controls, but there was no difference in long-term mortality between the 2 groups. Patients with SBP, however, were more likely to require surgery for complications related to LT within 1 year and were more likely to die of sepsis. CONCLUSIONS: Despite higher Child-Pugh and model for end-stage liver disease score at the time of LT, survival times of patients with SBP before LT are similar to those patients without SBP.

Liver transplant recipients: individual, social, and environmental resources.

CONTEXT: Patient characteristics are important in the liver transplant population because of proven associations between individual and environmental factors, treatment adherence, and health outcomes in general medical and other transplant populations. OBJECTIVE: To determine generalizability of the sample to other liver transplant populations and to establish reliability of measures used to assess individual and environmental resources. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data in a longitudinal study of adherence and health outcomes. PARTICIPANTS, SETTING: Ninety first-time adult liver transplant recipients at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center completed assessments of sociodemographic, health history, psychosocial, and environmental factors shortly after surgery; adherence and health outcomes were tracked throughout the study. RESULTS: The medical center cohort was older, less racially diverse, and contained more living donors than the national sample. Our sample was generally comparable to the medical center cohort on pretransplant sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Reliability/internal consistency on psychological measures was similar between our sample and most published norms. The mean scores on all coping scales in our sample were higher than normative. Our patients indicated a more negative perception of family environment and perceived relationships with their primary caregiver more positively than did the normative group. CONCLUSION: The generalizability of our sample to the parent population and reliability of individual and environmental measures reported here will enable us to examine relationships and the value of patient and contextual resources for predicting treatment adherence and health outcomes among liver transplant recipients.

Recurrent disease following liver transplantation for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis.

Recurrence of the original disease following liver transplantation is not uncommon and can lead to graft failure. There are limited data on recurrent fatty liver disease following liver transplantation. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of recurrent fatty liver disease in patients with biopsy-proven nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, its effect on survival, and whether there are any predictive factors for recurrence. We analyzed patients undergoing liver transplantation for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis from 1997 to 2008 at a single center. Patients undergoing transplantation for cholestatic disease, alcohol, hepatitis C, or cryptogenic cirrhosis were controls. Ninety-eight patients underwent transplantation for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis. Recurrent fatty liver disease was seen in 70%, 25% had recurrent nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, and 18% had stage II/IV or greater fibrosis at a mean of 18 months. No patients with recurrent nonalcoholic steatohepatitis developed graft failure or required retransplantation at a follow-up of 3 years. No recipient or donor factors were associated with disease recurrence, although patients with recurrent nonalcoholic steatohepatitis had a higher incidence of diabetes, weight gain, and dyslipidemia at the time of diagnosis of recurrence. One-third of patients with recurrent nonalcoholic steatohepatitis had normal liver enzymes at the time of diagnosis post-transplantation. In conclusion, recurrent fatty liver disease is common following liver transplantation for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis but does not lead to early allograft failure. Recurrent nonalcoholic steatohepatitis can occur despite normal liver enzymes, and features of metabolic syndrome are associated with disease recurrence.

Bridging locoregional therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma prior to liver transplantation.

INTRODUCTION: The impact of locoregional therapy prior to liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma utilizing either transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE), yttrium-90 ((90)Y), radiofrequency ablation (RFA), or resection prior to orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) is largely unknown. We sought to examine locoregional therapies and their effect on survival compared with transplantation alone. METHODS: A retrospective review of a prospectively collected database. RESULTS: 123 patients were included. Patients were analyzed in two groups. Group I consisted of 50 patients that received therapy (20 TACE; 16 (90)Y; 13 RFA, 3 resections). Group II consisted of 73 patients transplanted without therapy. Median list time was 28 days (range 2-260 days ) in group I, and 24 days (range 1-380 days) in group II. Median time from therapy to OLT was 3.8 months (range 9 days to 68 months). Twelve patients (24%) were successfully downstaged (8 TACE, 2 (90)Y, 2 RFA/resection). Overall 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival were 81%, 74%, and 74%, respectively. Survival was not statistically significantly different between the two groups (P = 0.53). The 12 patients downstaged did not have a significant difference in survival as compared with the patients who received therapy but did not respond or the patients who were transplanted without therapy (P = 0.76). CONCLUSION: Our report addresses locoregional therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma as a bridge to transplant. There was no statistical difference in overall survival between patients treated and those not treated prior to transplant. We provide further evidence that locoregional therapy is a safe tool for patients on the transplant list, does not impact survival, and can downstage selected patients to allow life-saving liver transplantation.

The grateful dead: damage-associated molecular pattern molecules and reduction/oxidation regulate immunity.

The response to pathogens and damage in plants and animals involves a series of carefully orchestrated, highly evolved, molecular mechanisms resulting in pathogen resistance and wound healing. In metazoans, damage- or pathogen-associated molecular pattern molecules (DAMPs, PAMPs) execute precise intracellular tasks and are also able to exert disparate functions when released into the extracellular space. The emergent consequence for both inflammation and wound healing of the abnormal extracellular persistence of these factors may underlie many clinical disorders. DAMPs/PAMPs are recognized by hereditable receptors including the Toll-like receptors, the NOD1-like receptors and retinoic-acid-inducible gene I-like receptors, as well as the receptor for advanced glycation end products. These host molecules 'sense' not only pathogens but also misfolded/glycated proteins or exposed hydrophobic portions of molecules, activating intracellular cascades that lead to an inflammatory response. Equally important are means to not only respond to these molecules but also to eradicate them. We have speculated that their destruction through oxidative mechanisms normally exerted by myeloid cells, such as neutrophils and eosinophils, or their persistence in the setting of pathologic extracellular reducing environments, maintained by exuberant necrotic cell death and/or oxidoreductases, represent important molecular means enabling chronic inflammatory states.

Thrombotic and nonthrombotic hepatic artery complications in adults and children following primary liver transplantation with long-term follow-up in 1000 consecutive patients.

Arterial complications have a major impact on survival after liver transplantation (LTx). The aim of this study was to examine arterial complications in adults and children after LTx. A total of 1000 consecutive primary LTx patients [mean age 40.5 years: 600 males, 400 females, 834 adults; 166 children (age <18 years)] were studied. Forty-two patients (4.2%; 31 adults, 11 children) developed hepatic artery thrombosis (HAT). Thrombosis in children occurred significantly early (mean 5.4 days) compared with adults (mean 418.7 days, P = 0.0001). Nonthrombotic complications occurred in 30 patients (29 adults, one child). Overall, 13-year patient survival after HAT was 43.2% (72.7% children, 32.9% adults). For nonthrombotic complications, 54.3% of adults died and 69.4% grafts were lost. An overall incidence of 4.2% thrombotic and 3.2% nonthrombotic complications was observed. Rate of HAT was higher in children, but survival was better compared with adults.

Use of alemtuzumab and tacrolimus monotherapy for cadaveric liver transplantation: with particular reference to hepatitis C virus.

We have proposed that the mechanisms of alloengraftment and variable acquired tolerance can be facilitated by minimum posttransplant immunosuppression. It was further suggested that the efficacy of minimalistic treatment could be enhanced by preoperative recipient conditioning with an antilymphoid antibody preparation. A total of 76 adults (38 hepatitis C virus [HCV], 38 HCV) were infused with 30 mg alemtuzumab before primary cadaveric liver transplantation and maintained afterward on daily monotherapy unless breakthrough rejection mandated additional agents. In stable patients, the intervals between tacrolimus doses were lengthened ("spaced weaning") after approximately 4 months. Eighty-four contemporaneous nonlymphoid-depleted liver recipients (58 HCV, 26 HCV) were treated with conventional postoperative immunosuppression. The overall incidence of rejection was similar with the two strategies of immunosuppression. With follow-ups of 14 to 22 months, patient and primary graft survival in HCV cases are 97% and 90%, respectively, with alemtuzumab depletion plus minimal immunosuppression versus 71% and 70%, respectively, under conventional immunosuppression. In HCV recipients, current patient and graft survival in the alemtuzumab-pretreated group are 71% and 70% versus 65% and 54%, respectively, under conventional treatment. With both strategies of immunosuppression, the adverse effect of preexisting HCV on survival parameters and graft function already was significant at the 1-year milestone, but its extent was not evident until the second year. With or without HCV, 62% of the 64 surviving lymphoid-depleted patients are on spaced immunosuppression, and four patients receive no immunosuppression. Lymphoid depletion with alemtuzumab and minimalistic maintenance immunosuppression is a practical strategy of liver transplantation in HCV recipients but not HCV recipients.

Liver transplantation in patients with HIV infection.

1. Liver transplantation for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients with end-stage liver disease in the era of highly active retroviral therapy has proven to be an effective treatment. The concerns of HIV progression have not been borne out by the growing worldwide experience. 2. CD4 counts are stable and HIV viral load is controllable with medication following liver transplantation. 3. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection in HIV-positive recipients is universal, but the severity of recurrence does not appear to be different from that in HIV-negative patients with HCV liver disease. 4. Complex pharmacokinetic interactions between the calcineurin inhibitors used for immunosuppression along with protease inhibitors are present, but management directed at recognizing the need for monitoring levels does not appear to increase the risk of toxicity. 5. The degree of immunosuppression from iatrogenic drug therapy and HIV does not lead to increased risk of infectious complications.

Liver transplantation for growing teratoma syndrome: report of a case.

Liver transplantation is a well-established treatment for liver failure and for a selected group of patients with hepatic tumors. The growing teratoma syndrome refers to the phenomenon whereby germ cell tumors enlarge after chemotherapy despite complete eradication of malignant cells and normalization of serum tumor markers. We present the case of a young patient with rapidly growing teratomatous masses in his liver who was treated with liver transplantation from a live donor. We discuss his postoperative management, follow-up, and briefly review literature on the subject.

First clinical use of a novel bioartificial liver support system (BLSS).

The first clinical use of the Excorp Medical Bioartificial Liver Support System (BLSS) in support of a 41-year-old African-American female with fulminant hepatic failure is described. The BLSS is currently in a Phase I/II safety evaluation at the University of Pittsburgh/UPMC System. Inclusion criteria for the study are patients with acute liver failure, any etiology, presenting with encephalopathy deteriorating beyond Parson's Grade 2. The BLSS consists of a blood pump; a heat exchanger to control blood temperature; an oxygenator to control oxygenation and pH; a bioreactor; and associated pressure and flow alarm systems. Patient liver support is provided by 70-100 g of porcine liver cells housed in the hollow fiber bioreactor. The patient exhibited transient hypotension and thrombocytopenia at initiation of perfusion. The only unanticipated safety event was a lowering of patient glucose level at the onset of perfusion with the BLSS that was treatable with intravenous glucose administration. Moderate changes in blood biochemistries pre- and post perfusion are indicative of liver support being provided by the BLSS. While the initial experience with the BLSS is encouraging, completion of the Phase I/II study is required in order to more fully understand the safety aspects of the BLSS.