The significance of p53 mutations as an indicator of the biological behavior of recurrent hepatocellular carcinomas

The significance of p53 mutations in the primary lesion for recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was evaluated. Mutations of p53 were examined using nonradioisotopic (nonRI)-polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) in 98 resected HCCs. Of the 98 cases, 25 (26%) had a p53 mutation. In 83 patients who survived surgery, the presence of a p53 mutation was associated with a shortened overall survival (P < 0.001) and a shortened cancer-free survival (P < 0.05). In 43 patients who developed recurrence, there was no statistically significant correlation between the status of p53 in the primary lesion and the clinical features of recurrent HCCs examined, i.e., extrahepatic metastasis, the number of recurrent tumors, extent of recurrent tumors, and treatment for recurrent tumors. However, postrecurrence survival was significantly lower in patients in whom a p53 mutation had been detected in the primary lesion (P < 0.01). A multivariate analysis for prognostic value after recurrence revealed that the p53 mutation was a useful independent prognostic factor affecting survival after recurrence (P < 0.01). In conclusion, our findings suggest that HCCs with p53 mutations have a high malignant potential based on their poor prognosis. Therefore, a p53 mutation in the primary lesion is useful as an indicator of the biological behavior of recurrent HCCs.