Posttransplant Malignancies in Liver Transplant Recipients

Abstract

Objectives: The incidence of malignancy is higher in solid-organ transplant recipients compared with the general population. In the present study, we present our experience with de novo malignancies encountered after both deceased-donor and living-donor liver transplants.

Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 335 patients who underwent an orthotopic liver transplant at our institution between September 2001 and December 2012 to identify subjects with de novo malignancies.

Results: Fourteen patients (4.1%) developed de novo malignancies after liver transplant. De novo malignancies included lymphoproliferative disorders after liver transplant in 7 patients (treated with chemotherapy), thyroid papillary carcinoma in 1 patient (treated with total thyroidectomy and radioactive iodine therapy), squamous cell carcinoma in 2 patients (treated with surgical resection), gastric stromal tumor in 1 patient (treated with surgical resection), ovarian carcinomas in 1 patient (treated with radical surgical resection and chemotherapy, who died within 1 year of diagnosis), lung cancer in 1 patient (treated with chemotherapy, but he had bone metastasis and died within 1 year of diagnosis), and neuroblastoma in 1 patient (treated with chemotherapy). In all patients, immunosuppression was changed to sirolimus.

Conclusions: Transplant recipients generally have advanced stage cancers at the time of diagnosis with a poor prognosis. Because some neoplasms are common, early detection of cancer is important to decrease cancer-related mortality and morbidity.