title: Efficacy of radiotherapy for PV and IVC tumor thrombosis in unresectable HCC.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of radiation therapy (RT) for tumor thrombosis (TT) in the major portal vein (PV) or inferior vena cava (IVC) from unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifteen HCC patients with main PVTT (n = 10) and IVCTT (n 5) were treated with three-dimensional conformal RT between 2001 and 2004. The mean dose was 38.5 Gy (range 28 to 54Gy). The concurrent therapies to intrahepatic tumor included transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) in 7, TACE + hepatic arterial infusion in 2 and systemic chemotherapy in 1 patient. The therapeutic effect was assessed by tumor regression for TT.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An objective response was observed in 3 of 15 patients (20%). There were no patients with progressive disease. The median survival time was 10 months. In 12 cases with stable disease, time to progression (TTP) estimated above 6 months were 42% (5/12 cases). In univariate analysis, therapeutic effect and TTP were affected to survival time. All patients did not have severe deterioration of liver function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the current study, we concluded that RT was superior treatment in terms of local control capability and was useful to continue further treatment because RT did not make liver function worse.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Faculty of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Japan. sammy12rugby@msn.com
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sugiyama
authors.forename: Toru
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Beppu
authors.forename: Takatoshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishiko
authors.forename: Masashi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Toshiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Masuda
authors.forename: Takahumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: Katsunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.forename: Hiromitsu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takamori
authors.forename: Keiichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kanemitsu
authors.forename: Masahiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirota
authors.forename: Ryuji
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Baba
authors.forename: Natsuo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Oya
authors.forename: Yasuyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yamashita
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Baba
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000473:pathology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D008297:Male; D008495:Medical Oncology / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D011169:Portal Vein / Q000473:pathology / Q000528:radiation effects*; D011878:Radiotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D013927:Thrombosis; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014682:Vena Cava, Inferior / Q000473:pathology / Q000528:radiation effects*