The presence of a satellite nodule or peritumoral hypointensity in the hepatobiliary phase during preoperative hepatobiliary magnetic resonance imaging correlated with a high rate of recurrence among patients both within and outside Milan criteria who underwent liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma, according to recently published data.

“These high-risk radiologic findings were not only helpful in patients transplanted outside the Milan criteria, but also for patients transplanted within the Milan criteria,” Ah Yeong Kim, MD, from the Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, South Korea, and colleagues wrote. “Our data indicate that hepatobiliary MRI can be a useful tool in further refinement of current LT selection criteria, and that it should be a valuable component of pre-LT evaluation tool in our clinical practice.”