Background and objectives: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection plays an important role in the development of not only hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) but also intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC). The aim of this study was to identify the specific characteristics of HCV-related ICC.
Methods: Of 90 patients who underwent curative resection for mass-forming ICC, 33 patients had chronic HCV infection. We examined the relationship between HCV infection and the clinicopathologic findings and surgical outcomes.
Results: The incidence of simultaneous HCC was significantly higher in patients infected with HCV (30.3%) than in those without HCV infection (5.3%). Four patients were diagnosed with metachronous HCC after resection for HCV-related ICC. Patients with HCV infection had a significantly shorter overall survival time than patients without HCV infection, although there was no difference in ICC tumor-free survival rates between the two groups. Five HCC-related deaths occurred in patients with HCV infection, while none of patients without HCV infection died from HCC. Multivariate analysis indicated that HCV infection, tumor size >5 cm, multiple ICC tumors, and nodal metastases were predictors of poor prognosis in patients who underwent curative resection for mass-forming ICC.
Conclusions: HCV infection was an adverse prognostic factor after curative resection for mass-forming ICC.
Keywords: hepatitis C virus; intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma; postoperative outcome.
© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.