Background: Most patients with hepatocellular carcinoma have underlying cirrhosis, and this impairment of liver function makes hepatectomy difficult, prompting the use of other modalities such as transcatheter arterial embolization and percutaneous ethanol injection.
Methods: Laparoscopic ethanol injection was performed in 48 previously untreated patients with hepatocellular carcinoma smaller than 2 cm in diameter. Long-term survival was evaluated.
Results: In 12 patients, hepatocellular carcinoma was not detected by trans-cutaneous ultrasonography but could be demonstrated by laparoscopic ultrasonography. Laparoscopic ethanol injection did not cause serious complications in any patient. The mean hospital stay after ethanol injection was 8.6 days (4 to 15 days). The cumulative survival rate was 86.7% at 3 years and 60.0% at 5 years. According to the Child-Pugh classification, the cumulative survival rate at 5 years was 87.9% for class A, 65.7% for class B, and 28.6% for class C.
Conclusions: The long-term prognosis for patients with small hepatocellular carcinoma treated solely by laparoscopic ethanol injection is satisfactory but still dependent on underlying liver function.