Prognostic impact of malnutrition based on the global leadership initiative on malnutrition criteria in older patients undergoing liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate preoperative malnutrition using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria and determine whether its prognostic impact after initial liver resection (LR) differs between older (≥70 years) and younger (<70 years) patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS

This retrospective analysis included 330 patients with HCC who underwent LR between January 2011 and December 2019 at our institution. Overall survival (OS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), postoperative recurrence patterns, and treatment strategies for recurrence were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

Among the 330 patients with HCC, 150 and 180 were classified into younger and older groups, respectively. Preoperative severe malnutrition was independently associated with OS (p=0.001) and RFS (p=0.044) in older patients and with RFS (p=0.039), but not OS, in younger patients. Moreover, in older patients, preoperative malnutrition was associated with a lower rate of aggressive treatments for intrahepatic recurrence (p=0.018) and a higher rate of extrahepatic recurrence (p=0.023) after LR, which was not observed in younger patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Severe malnutrition, as per the GLIM criteria, is a significant independent predictor of OS and RFS in older patients with HCC who underwent LR. Preoperative malnutrition was associated with the treatment strategies for intrahepatic recurrence and the rate of extrahepatic recurrence in this population.