AIM:To determine,for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC),the patient demographic profile and costs of their admissions to the hospitals of the Portuguese National Health System from 1993 to 2005.METHODS:The National Registry(ICD-9CM,Inter-national Classification of Diseases,155.0)provided data from the 97 Hospitals in Portugal.RESULTS:We studied 7932 admissions that progres-sively rose from 292 in 1993 to 834 in 2005,having a male predominance of 78%(6130/7932).The global rate of hospital admissions for HCC rose from 3.1/105 in 1993 to 8.3/105 in 2005.The average length of stay decreased from 17.5 ± 17.9 d in 1993 to 9.3 ± 10.4 d in 2005,P < 0.001.The average hospital mortality for HCC remained high over these years,22.3% in 1993 and 26.7% in 2005.Nationally,hospital costs(in Euros-€)rose in all variables studied:overall costs from €533 000 in 1993,to €4 629 000 in 2005,cost per day of stay from €105 in 1993,to €597 in 2005,average cost of each admission from €1828 in 1993,to €5550 in 2005.In 2005,1.8%(15/834)of hospital admissions for HCC were related to liver transplant,and responsible for a cost of about €1.5 million,corresponding to one third of the overall costs for HCC admissions in that same year.CONCLUSION:From 1993 to 2005 hospital admissions in Portugal for HCC tripled.Overall costs for these admissions increased 9 times,with all variables related to cost analysis rising accordingly.Liver transplant,indicated in a small group of patients,showed a disproportionate increase in costs. AIM: To determine, for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the patient demographic profile and costs of their admissions to the hospitals of the Portuguese National Health System from 1993 to 2005. METHODS: The National Registry (ICD-9CM, Inter-national Classification of Diseases, 155.0) provided data from the 97 Hospitals in Portugal. Results: We studied 7932 admissions that progres-sively rose from 292 in 1993 to 834 in 2005, having a male predominance of 78% (6130/7932). Global rate of hospital admissions for HCC rose from 3.1 / 105 in 1993 to 8.3 / 105 in 2005. The average length of stay decreased from 17.5 ± 17.9 d in 1993 to 9.3 ± 10.4 d in 2005, P <0.001. The average hospital mortality for HCC remained high over these years, 22.3% in 1993 and 26.7% in 2005. Nationally, hospital costs (in Euros- €) rose in all variables studied: overall costs from € 533 000 in 1993, to € 4 629 000 in 2005, cost per day of stay from € 105 in 1993, to € 597 in 2005, average cost of each admission from € 1828 in 1993, to 5550 in 2005.In 2005, 1.8% (15/834) of hospital admissions for HCC were related to liver transplant, and responsible for a cost of about € 1.5 million, corresponding to one third of the overall costs for HCC admissions in that same year.CONCLUSION: From 1993 to 2005 hospital admissions in Portugal for HCC tripled. Overall harness for these admissions increased 9 times, with all variables related to cost analysis rising accordingly. Liver transplant, indicated in a small group of patients, showed a disproportionate increase in costs.