Background: The incidence of spontaneous rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is low in Europe, at less than 3%. HCC rupture remains a life-threatening complication, with mortality reported between 16 and 30%. The risk of bleeding recurrence has never been clearly evaluated in such clinical situation. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the current risk of mortality related to HCC rupture and to focus on the risk of bleeding recurrence following interventional management.
Methods: All patients admitted to 14 French-Italian surgical centers for spontaneous rupture of HCC between May 2000 and May 2012 were retrospectively included. Clinical data, imaging features, relevant laboratory data, treatment strategies, and prognoses were analyzed.
Results: Overall, 58 of the 138 included patients (42%) had cirrhosis. Thirty-five patients (25%) presented with hemorrhagic shock, and 19% with organ(s) dysfunction. Bleeding control was obtained by interventional hemostasis, emergency liver resection, and conservative medical management in 86 (62%), 24 (18%), and 21 (15%) patients, respectively. Best supportive care was chosen for 7 (5%) patients. The mortality rate following rupture was 24%. The bleeding recurrence rate was 22% with related mortality of 52%. In multivariate analysis, a bilirubin level >17 micromol/L (HR 3.768; p = 0.006), bleeding recurrence (HR 5.400; p < 0.0001), and ICU admission after initial management (HR 8.199; p < 0.0001) were associated with in-hospital mortality.
Conclusion: This European, multicenter, large-cohort study confirmed that the prognosis of ruptured HCC is poor with an overall mortality rate of 24%, despite important advances in endovascular techniques. Overall, the rate of bleeding recurrence was more than 20%, with a related high risk of mortality.