Optimizing Liver Transplant Allocation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Development and Validation of a Survival Benefit‐Based Model

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Main Authors: Hao Liu, Isabel Neckermann, Jason Mial‐Anthony, Charbel Elias, Abiha Abdullah, Vrishketan Sethi, Christopher Kaltenmeier, Amaan Rahman, Eishan Ashwat, Packiaraj Godwin, Subedi Sabin, Timothy Fokken, Shwe Han, Xingyu Zhang, Stalin Dharmayan, Jaideep Behari, Stela Celaj, Michele Molinari
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Published: Wiley 2026
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author Hao Liu
Isabel Neckermann
Jason Mial‐Anthony
Charbel Elias
Abiha Abdullah
Vrishketan Sethi
Christopher Kaltenmeier
Amaan Rahman
Eishan Ashwat
Packiaraj Godwin
Subedi Sabin
Timothy Fokken
Shwe Han
Xingyu Zhang
Stalin Dharmayan
Jaideep Behari
Stela Celaj
Michele Molinari
author_facet Hao Liu
Isabel Neckermann
Jason Mial‐Anthony
Charbel Elias
Abiha Abdullah
Vrishketan Sethi
Christopher Kaltenmeier
Amaan Rahman
Eishan Ashwat
Packiaraj Godwin
Subedi Sabin
Timothy Fokken
Shwe Han
Xingyu Zhang
Stalin Dharmayan
Jaideep Behari
Stela Celaj
Michele Molinari
Hao Liu
Isabel Neckermann
Jason Mial‐Anthony
Charbel Elias
Abiha Abdullah
Vrishketan Sethi
Christopher Kaltenmeier
Amaan Rahman
Eishan Ashwat
Packiaraj Godwin
Subedi Sabin
Timothy Fokken
Shwe Han
Xingyu Zhang
Stalin Dharmayan
Jaideep Behari
Stela Celaj
Michele Molinari
collection Wiley Open Access
contents Optimizing Liver Transplant Allocation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Development and Validation of a Survival Benefit‐Based Model Hao Liu Isabel Neckermann Jason Mial‐Anthony Charbel Elias Abiha Abdullah Vrishketan Sethi Christopher Kaltenmeier Amaan Rahman Eishan Ashwat Packiaraj Godwin Subedi Sabin Timothy Fokken Shwe Han Xingyu Zhang Stalin Dharmayan Jaideep Behari Stela Celaj Michele Molinari Clinical Transplantation ABSTRACT Introduction Liver transplantation (LT) is the only curative option for patients with unrespectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In the United States. current organ allocation policies grant the same priority to patients with tumors within the Milan criteria. This uniform approach leads to higher waitlist dropout among candidated with more advanced tumors of with more aggressive tumor biology. A model to stratify HCC candidates into different risk groups could optimize organ allocation by providing priority to patients within transplantable criteria but at increased risk of dropout. Methods Data from 30,565 adult HCC LT candidates within the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) (2002–2022) were used. Inclusion criteria were age ≥18 years and tumors within Milan criteria. Recipients of previous transplants, multi‐visceral grafts, and those with missing exception applications for HCC were excluded. The population was randomly divided into development ( n = 15,282) and validation ( n = 15,283) cohorts. The primary outcome was 5‐year LT survival benefit, defined as the difference in survival with and without LT. Results C‐MELD 3.0, serum AFP, and tumor burden score (TBS) were the strongest predictors of LT survival benefit. The HCC‐Liver Transplant Survival Benefit model was defined as HCC‐LTSB = 0.65 × (C‐MELD 145 3.0 − 6) + 1.99 × (TBS − 2.25) + 0.68 × log2(AFP). Validation demonstrated strong performance (Pearson's r = 0.93; 95% CI: 0.93–0.94; R 2 = 0.87; C‐index = 0.91). Conclusion The HCC‐LTSB model accurately predicted the survival benefit provided by LT in candidates listed with unresectable HCC within UNOS criteria. 10.1111/ctr.70488 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
doi_str_mv 10.1111/ctr.70488
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id wiley_oa_10_1111_ctr_70488
institution Wiley Open Access
license_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
publishDate 2026
publisher Wiley
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spellingShingle Optimizing Liver Transplant Allocation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Development and Validation of a Survival Benefit‐Based Model
Hao Liu
Isabel Neckermann
Jason Mial‐Anthony
Charbel Elias
Abiha Abdullah
Vrishketan Sethi
Christopher Kaltenmeier
Amaan Rahman
Eishan Ashwat
Packiaraj Godwin
Subedi Sabin
Timothy Fokken
Shwe Han
Xingyu Zhang
Stalin Dharmayan
Jaideep Behari
Stela Celaj
Michele Molinari
Clinical Transplantation
Optimizing Liver Transplant Allocation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Development and Validation of a Survival Benefit‐Based Model Hao Liu Isabel Neckermann Jason Mial‐Anthony Charbel Elias Abiha Abdullah Vrishketan Sethi Christopher Kaltenmeier Amaan Rahman Eishan Ashwat Packiaraj Godwin Subedi Sabin Timothy Fokken Shwe Han Xingyu Zhang Stalin Dharmayan Jaideep Behari Stela Celaj Michele Molinari Clinical Transplantation ABSTRACT Introduction Liver transplantation (LT) is the only curative option for patients with unrespectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In the United States. current organ allocation policies grant the same priority to patients with tumors within the Milan criteria. This uniform approach leads to higher waitlist dropout among candidated with more advanced tumors of with more aggressive tumor biology. A model to stratify HCC candidates into different risk groups could optimize organ allocation by providing priority to patients within transplantable criteria but at increased risk of dropout. Methods Data from 30,565 adult HCC LT candidates within the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) (2002–2022) were used. Inclusion criteria were age ≥18 years and tumors within Milan criteria. Recipients of previous transplants, multi‐visceral grafts, and those with missing exception applications for HCC were excluded. The population was randomly divided into development ( n = 15,282) and validation ( n = 15,283) cohorts. The primary outcome was 5‐year LT survival benefit, defined as the difference in survival with and without LT. Results C‐MELD 3.0, serum AFP, and tumor burden score (TBS) were the strongest predictors of LT survival benefit. The HCC‐Liver Transplant Survival Benefit model was defined as HCC‐LTSB = 0.65 × (C‐MELD 145 3.0 − 6) + 1.99 × (TBS − 2.25) + 0.68 × log2(AFP). Validation demonstrated strong performance (Pearson's r = 0.93; 95% CI: 0.93–0.94; R 2 = 0.87; C‐index = 0.91). Conclusion The HCC‐LTSB model accurately predicted the survival benefit provided by LT in candidates listed with unresectable HCC within UNOS criteria. 10.1111/ctr.70488 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Optimizing Liver Transplant Allocation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Development and Validation of a Survival Benefit‐Based Model
topic Clinical Transplantation
url https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ctr.70488