Simplified Staging System for Predicting the Prognosis of Patients With Resectable Liver Metastasis

Abstract

Liver metastases from colorectal cancer are classified by Union Internationale Contre le Cancer (UICC) staging criteria as stage IV, although the prognosis of patients with this disease varies widely.¹ Hepatic resection for colorectal liver metastasis remains the only treatment that has curative potential.² Many controversies exist about the treatment of liver metastasis, such as the effectiveness of adjuvant chemotherapy, the timing of resection for synchronous metastasis, and the operative indications for multiple metastasis or extrahepatic metastasis. As a result, there is an increasing need for a simple staging system that can reflect the prognosis and permit the stratification of patients for clinical trials.