title: Sustained complete response of hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombus following discontinuation of sorafenib: A case report.
abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third most common cause of cancer-associated mortality worldwide. No effective treatment has been established for unresectable advanced HCC, and the prognosis is poor. Sorafenib is an oral multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor for unresectable advanced HCC that significantly improves progression-free and overall survival. However, in the two large phase III clinical trials (the SHARP and Asia-Pacific trials), no cases of complete response (CR) were reported. The present study reports the case of a 68-year-old male with hepatitis C virus-related cirrhosis and multiple recurrent HCCs, with a tumor thrombus of the third portal vein following resection. The patient received 400 mg once daily (half the standard dose) of sorafenib for two years and achieved a CR. At the most recent follow-up examination at one year after the cessation of treatment, the patient was observed to be in remission without clinical or imaging evidence of disease recurrence.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazue
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shiozawa
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Manabu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ikehara
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Matsukiyo
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kogame
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kanayama
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Teppei
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsui
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshinori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Koji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshinori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Igarashi
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Medical Center, Omori Hospital, Ota-ku, Tokyo 143-8541, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasukiyo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sumino
keywords: complete response; hepatocellular carcinoma; portal vein tumor thrombus; sorafenib