Lower hepatocellular carcinoma surveillance in metabolic dysfunction‐associated steatotic liver disease: Impact on treatment eligibility

2024

Lower HCC Surveillance in MASLD: Impact on Treatment Eligibility

Sample size: 687 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): C Henry‐Blake, Balachandrakumar Vinay, Kassab Mohamed, Devonport Joshua, Matthews Charmaine, Fox James, Baggus Elisabeth, Henney Alexander, Stern Nicholas, Cuthbertson Daniel J, Palmer Daniel, Johnson Philip J, Hughes David M, Hydes Theresa J, Cross Timothy J S

Primary Institution: Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Hypothesis

This study aimed to compare the determinants and impact of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance rates for people with metabolic dysfunction‐associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) versus other chronic liver diseases.

Conclusion

Patients with MASLD are less likely to have been enrolled in HCC surveillance and present with larger tumors, leading to reduced eligibility for curative treatment.

Supporting Evidence

Only 21.6% of MASLD patients were enrolled in HCC surveillance compared to 42.1% of non-MASLD patients.
Patients with MASLD HCC had a median tumor diameter of 44 mm, significantly larger than the 30 mm for non-MASLD HCC.
Patients with MASLD were less likely to receive curative treatment, with 28.5% receiving it compared to 38.8% for non-MASLD.

Takeaway

People with a certain liver disease called MASLD are not getting checked for liver cancer as often as they should, which means they might miss out on treatments that could help them.

Methodology

A dataset of HCC patients from a UK hospital (2007–2022) was analyzed using various statistical tests including Mann–Whitney U-test and regression modeling.