title: Design and rationale for the non-interventional Global Investigation of Therapeutic DEcisions in Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Of its Treatment with Sorafenib (GIDEON) study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a complicated condition influenced by multiple confounding factors, making optimum patient management extremely challenging. Ethnicity, stage at diagnosis, comorbidities and tumour morphology affect outcomes and vary from region to region, and there is no common language to assess patient prognosis and make treatment recommendations. Despite recent efforts to reduce the incidence of HCC, most patients present with unresectable disease. Non-surgical treatments include ablation, transarterial chemoembolisation and the multikinase inhibitor, sorafenib, but their effects in all patient subgroups are not known and further information is needed to optimise the use of these treatments.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The Global Investigation of Therapeutic DEcisions in Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Of its Treatment with SorafeNib (GIDEON) study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT00812175; http://clinicaltrials.gov/) is an ongoing global, prospective, non-interventional study of patients with unresectable HCC who are eligible for systemic therapy and for whom the decision has been taken to treat with sorafenib under real-life practice conditions. The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of sorafenib in different subgroups, especially Child-Pugh B where data are limited.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study will recruit 3000 patients from > 40 countries and follow them for approximately 5 years to compile a large and robust database of information that will be used to analyse local, regional and global differences in baseline characteristics, disease aetiology, treatment practice patterns and treatment outcomes, with a view to improve the knowledge base used to guide physician treatment decisions and to improve patient outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Division of Diagnostic Imaging and Intervention, Department of Liver Transplantation, Hepatology and Infectious Diseases, Pisa University School of Medicine, Cisanello Hospital, Pisa, Italy. lencioni@med.unipi.it
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lencioni
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marrero
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Venook
authors.forename: S-L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kudo
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001557:Benzenesulfonates / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D017327:Clinical Trials, Phase IV as Topic / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D009536:Niacinamide / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D018579:Patient Selection; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011725:Pyridines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012107:Research Design; D000077157:Sorafenib; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D001557:Benzenesulfonates; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds; D011725:Pyridines; D009536:Niacinamide; D000077157:Sorafenib