Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurs more frequently in males than in females, particularly in high- and intermediate-prevalence areas of the world. Accumulating data have shown that male patients tend to display more aggressive tumor characteristics than female patients at initial presentation. Moreover, the rate of spontaneous survival and survival after treatment is significantly lower in male patients with HCC. The explanation underlying gender disparity in clinicopathologic features and prognosis of the patients remains to be elucidated. Gender-specific lifestyle and social environment, as well as the role of sex hormones in hepatic carcinogenesis, may contribute to the observed gender difference in clinicopathologic aspects of HCC. In this review, we have summarized the clinicopathologic characteristics and survival of patients with HCC in relation to gender.