Retrospective Cohort Study
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World J Gastroenterol. Jul 7, 2014; 20(25): 8158-8165
Published online Jul 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i25.8158
Hepatocellular carcinoma treated by conventional transarterial chemoembolization in field-practice: Serum sodium predicts survival
Marco Biolato, Luca Miele, Vittoria Vero, Simona Racco, Carmine Di Stasi, Roberto Iezzi, Andrea Zanché, Maurizio Pompili, Gian Ludovico Rapaccini, Giuseppe La Torre, Antonio Gasbarrini, Antonio Grieco
Marco Biolato, Luca Miele, Vittoria Vero, Simona Racco, Andrea Zanché, Maurizio Pompili, Gian Ludovico Rapaccini, Antonio Gasbarrini, Antonio Grieco, Department of Internal Medicine, Policlinico Gemelli Hospital and Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy
Carmine Di Stasi, Roberto Iezzi, Department of Radiology, Policlinico Gemelli Hospital and Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy
Giuseppe La Torre, Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, 00185 Rome, Italy
Author contributions: Grieco A, Miele L, Vero V and Biolato M designed the research; Vero V, Racco S, Di Stasi C, Iezzi R and Zanché A performed the research; Biolato M, Miele L, La Torre G and Grieco A analyzed the data; Biolato M wrote the paper and Pompili M, Rapaccini GL, Gasbarrini A critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content.
Correspondence to: Antonio Grieco, MD, Professor of Medicine, Hepatology Unit, Department of Internal Medicine, Policlinico Gemelli Hospital and Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Largo Agostino Gemelli n 8, 00168 Rome, Italy. agrieco@rm.unicatt.it
Telephone: +39-6-30155451 Fax: +39-6-35502775
Received: December 10, 2013
Revised: February 7, 2014
Accepted: March 8, 2014
Published online: July 7, 2014
Processing time: 204 Days and 21.4 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: This work describes, in a retrospective cohort of 270 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with conventional transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) at our institution, the prognostic role of baseline clinical, biochemical and radiological characteristics of patients. Besides well-known prognostic parameters like portal vein thrombosis, nodule diameter and number of lesions, this study underlines the independent prognostic role of serum sodium, a well-known prognostic parameter in the field of liver cirrhosis, but less investigated in the field of hepatocellular carcinoma. Our study is the first to document the prognostic role of serum sodium in patients with HCC treated with TACE in a Western center.