Pulmonary function impairment predicted poor prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after hepatectomy

Tumor hypoxia can influence the progression and metastasis of various cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Clinical studies have indicated that hyperbaric oxygen may improve the prognosis and reduce complications in HCC patients; however, whether pulmonary function can influence the prognosis of HCC remains unknown. In this study, we found that pulmonary function was associated with clinicopathological features, including smoking, liver cirrhosis, tumor size Edmondson-Steiner grade, total operative blood loss and perioperative blood transfusion. Through Cox proportional hazard regression analysis, smoking, tumor number, tumor size, liver cirrhosis, total operative blood loss and pulmonary function were independent risk factors for overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS). In addition, poor pulmonary function was independently associated with shorter survival and increased HCC recurrence in patients. Notably, we also found that HCC with liver cirrhosis predicted worse prognosis. In summary, our study found pulmonary function could influence HCC progression. Improve pulmonary function may enhance the OS and DFS of patients with HCC.