Primary hepatocellular carcinoma in women of mainland China. A clinicopathologic analysis of 104 patients.

Abstract

The clinicopathologic characteristics of 104 hepatectomy samples from female patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) were compared with similar samples from 900 male patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma; results of this comparison were studied. The male-to-female ratio was 8.7:1. The mean age of female patients with PHC was 46.2 years, which was approximately 3 years younger (49.1 years) than that of male patients with PHC. The frequency of associated liver cirrhosis (LC) was 49% in women with PHC and 68.2% in men with PHC (P < 0.01). The mean age of the female patients without LC was 43.2 years, more than 4 years younger (47.9 years) than that of the male patients. The mean ages of female and male patients with LC were 49.1 years and 49.8 years, 6 and 2 years older than that of their corresponding groups without LC, respectively. The positive rates of serum hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) were 70.8% in the men and 59.7% in the women. The 5-year postoperative survival rates were 50% in the women and 25.7% in the men (P < 0.01). It is suggested that the development of PHC in women appears at a younger age than that of PHC in men in China and usually is associated with a lower frequency of LC and a more satisfactory postoperative prognosis.