Imaging response predictors following drug eluting beads chemoembolization in the neoadjuvant liver transplant treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma

Table 1 Clinical characteristics according to objective response - target lesion response

Variable	NR (n = 44)	RE (n = 141)	Total (n = 185)	P value
Gender (male), n (%)	39 (88.6)	118 (83.7)	157 (84.9)	0.424
Age (yr), mean ± SD	58.7 ± 9.2	57.4 ± 8.1	57.7 ± 8.4	0.3631
BMI, mean ± SD	27.2 ± 4.2	27 ± 4.8	27.1 ± 4.7	0.7171
Systemic hypertension, n (%)	19 (43.2)	60 (42.6)	79 (42.7)	0.941
DM, n (%)	17 (38.6)	46 (32.6)	63 (34.1)	0.463
DLP, n (%)	1 (2.3)	9 (6.4)	10 (5.4)	0.4562
Smoker (%)	12 (27.3)	28 (19.9)	40 (21.6)	0.297
Coagulopathy3, 4, n (%)	21 (47.7)	63 (44.7)	84 (45.4)	0.723
Thrombocitopenia5, n (%)	28 (63.6)	93 (66)	121 (65.4)	0.778
CHILD, n (%)				0.7056
A	19 (45.2)	72 (52.6)	91 (50.8)
B	20 (47.6)	56 (40.9)	76 (42.5)
C	3 (7.1)	9 (6.6)	12 (6.7)
MELD, mean ± SD	12.1 ± 3.5	11.9 ± 3.5	12 ± 3.5	0.6051
Downstaging7 - Milan Criteria, n (%)	9 (20.5)	45 (31.9)	54 (29.2)	0.144
Multinodular HCC, n (%)	19 (43.2)	68 (48.2)	87 (47)	0.558

χ²-test.

¹Student’s t-test;

²Fisher’s exact test;

³Can’t calculate;

⁴Patients with INR > 1.2[19];

⁵Patients with serum platelet counts < 150.000/mm³[20];

⁶Probability ratio test;

⁷Patients undergoing neoadjuvant liver transplant treatment excluded from the Milan Criteria. NR: Non-responder; RE: Responder; BMI: Body mass index; DM: Diabetes mellitus; DLP: Dyslipidemia; CHILD: Child-Turcotte-Pugh classification; MELD: Model for end-stage liver disease; DEB-TACE: Drug-eluting beads transarterial chemoembolization; INR: International normalized ratio; HCC: Hepatocellular carcinoma.