Expanding the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) v2018 diagnostic population: performance and reliability of LI-RADS for distinguishing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from non-HCC primary liver carcinoma in patients who do not meet strict LI-RADS high-risk criteria

Daniel R. Ludwig, Tyler J. Fraum, Roberto Cannella, Richard Tsai, Muhammad Naeem, Maverick LeBlanc, Amber Salter, Allan Tsung, Jaquelyn Fleckenstein, Anup S. Shetty, Amir A. Borhani, Alessandro Furlan, Kathryn J. Fowler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

16 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) can be diagnosed using imaging criteria in patients at high-risk for HCC, according to Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) guidelines. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic performance and inter-rater reliability (IRR) of LI-RADS v2018 for differentiating HCC from non-HCC primary liver carcinoma (PLC), in patients who are at increased risk for HCC but not included in the LI-RADS ‘high-risk’ population. Methods: This retrospective HIPAA-compliant study included a 10-year experience of pathologically-proven PLC at two liver transplant centers, and included patients with non-cirrhotic hepatitis C infection, non-cirrhotic non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and fibrosis. Two readers evaluated each lesion and assigned an overall LI-RADS diagnostic category, additionally scoring all major, LR-M, and ancillary features. Results: The final study cohort consisted of 27 HCCs and 104 non-HCC PLC in 131 patients. The specificity of a ‘definite HCC’ designation was 97% for reader 1 and 100% for reader 2. The IRR was fair for overall LI-RADS category and substantial for most major features. Conclusion: In a population at increased risk for HCC but not currently included in the LI-RADS ‘high-risk’ population, LI-RADS v2018 demonstrated very high specificity for distinguishing pathologically-proven HCC from non-HCC PLC.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1697-1706
Number of pages10
JournalHPB
Volume21
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2019
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Hepatology
  • Gastroenterology

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