Current Oncology (Feb 2022)

Low Platelet Count Predicts Reduced Survival in Potentially Resectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma

  • Christopher Schrecker,
  • Oliver Waidmann,
  • Hanan El Youzouri,
  • Jörg Trojan,
  • Andreas Anton Schnitzbauer,
  • Wolf Otto Bechstein,
  • Stefan Zeuzem,
  • Christine Koch

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/curroncol29030124
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 29, no. 3
pp. 1475 – 1487

Abstract

Read online

The prognostic role of platelet count in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear, and in fact both thrombocytopenia and thrombocytosis are reported as predictors of unfavourable outcomes. This study aimed to clarify the prognostic value of preoperative platelet count in potentially resectable HCC. We retrospectively reviewed 128 patients who underwent hepatic resection for HCC at a tertiary academic centre (2007–2019). Patient data were modelled by regression analysis, and platelet count was treated as a continuous variable. 89 patients had BCLC 0/A tumours and 39 had BCLC B tumours. Platelet count was higher in patients with larger tumours and lower in patients with higher MELD scores, advanced fibrosis, and portal hypertension (p p = 0.034) and increased perioperative mortality (odds ratio 1.96 per 50/nL decrease in platelet count, 95% CI 1.19–3.53, p = 0.014). Overall, low platelet count correlates with increased liver disease severity, inferior survival, and excess perioperative mortality in resectable HCC. These insights might be applied in clinical practice to better select patients for resection.

Keywords