Clinical Case Panel: Treatment Alternatives for Inoperable Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Semin Radiat Oncol. 2018 Oct;28(4):295-308. doi: 10.1016/j.semradonc.2018.08.001.

Abstract

Surgical resection or liver transplantation offers the best chance of cure for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Unfortunately, most patients are not good candidates for liver resection due to locally advanced disease or compromised liver function. Moreover, liver transplantation waiting lists are long. For those cases not amenable for resection, a variety of local treatment modalities are available, such as image-guided ablative procedures, transarterial chemoembolization, and radioembolization, as well as external beam radiation. HCC presentation can vary considerably in size, number, and location of lesions. The management of inoperable HCC is, therefore, quite complex, and there is a lack of consensus on the best local treatment modality for each type tumor presentation. Here, we present 4 clinical case scenarios representative of commonly seen cases in the clinical setting, with different therapeutic perspectives from institutions with high expertise in the management of HCC.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Ablation Techniques*
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use
  • Biomarkers, Tumor / analysis
  • Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / diagnostic imaging
  • Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / therapy*
  • Chemoembolization, Therapeutic / methods*
  • Female
  • Hepatitis C, Chronic / complications
  • Humans
  • Liver Cirrhosis / complications
  • Liver Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging
  • Liver Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Liver Transplantation
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Radiosurgery / methods*

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Biomarkers, Tumor