title: Sorafenib combined with percutaneous radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of medium-sized hepatocellular carcinoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Sorafenib, an oral multikinase inhibitor, is the proved therapy method for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Based on heat delivery, Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has been found to achieve complete neoplasm necrosis. It is the most widely performed percutaneous therapy for HCC. However, Study associated combined Sorafenib with RFA therapy for patients with advanced HCC has never been reported. The aim of present study is to explore the efficacy and safety of sorafenib combined with RFA therapy for the patients with medium-sized HCC.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 62 patients diagnosed as HCC were involved in this study. All patients were randomly assigned to sorafenib and RFA (n=30) or RFA-alone (n=32) treatment groups. Treatment outcomes, including recurrence rates, time to progression (TTP) and adverse reactions induced by sorafenib were observed and recorded to assess the efficacy and safety of the combination method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the overall follow-up period, the recurrence rate of the combination subgroup was 56.7% (17/30), and that of the RFA-alone subgroup was 87.5% (28/32) (p < 0.01). The median TTP was 17.0 months in the combination therapy vs. 6.1 months in the RFA-alone (p < 0.05). Hand-foot skin reactions were reported by 83.3% (25/30) of patients and 46.7% (14/30) reported diarrhea while the most adverse events (AEs) were mild to moderate in the combination subgroup.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Sorafenib combined with RFA significantly decreased recurrence rates and prolonged the survival time of medium-sized HCC patients. The combination therapy is safer and more effective than the control without unexpected side effects. Furthermore, the earlier application, the better results were.
authors: Department of Interventional Therapy Center, Ji'nan Infectious Disease Hospital, Ji'nan, China. kuihualicn@126.com.
authors: X
authors: X
authors: Kan
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Jing
authors: Q-Y
authors: QY
authors: Wan
authors: J-C
authors: JC
authors: Pan
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Han
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Yang
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Zhu
authors: Q
authors: Q
authors: Wang
authors: K-H
authors: KH
authors: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000379:methods*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D009536:Niacinamide / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000077157:Sorafenib; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds; D009536:Niacinamide; D000077157:Sorafenib