title: Hepatocellular carcinoma: Where there is unmet need.
abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a complex and heterogeneous tumor most commonly associated with underlying chronic liver disease, especially hepatitis. It is a growing problem in the United States and worldwide. There are two potential ways to prevent HCC. Primary prevention which is based on vaccination or secondary prevention involving agents that slow down carcinogenesis. Several pathways have been thought to play a role in the development of HCC; specifically, those involving vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-mediated angiogenesis, WNT, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), and c-MET. Currently, there are only a limited number of drugs which have been proven as effective treatment options for HCC and several clinical trials are testing drugs which target aberrations in the pathways mentioned above. In this review, we discuss currently approved therapies, monotherapies and combination therapy for the treatment of HCC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics (Phase I Clinical Trials Program), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Manojkumar
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bupathi
authors.affiliation: Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaseb
authors.affiliation: Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics (Phase I Clinical Trials Program), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Funda
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Meric-Bernstam
authors.affiliation: Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics (Phase I Clinical Trials Program), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA. Electronic address: anaing@mdanderson.org.
authors.forename: Aung
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Naing
mesh_terms: D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000628:therapy*; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy / Q000639:trends; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000502:physiology; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000502:physiology; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: C467484:VEGFA protein, human; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; C546842:MTOR protein, human; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases
keywords: AKT; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Molecular targets; PI3K; mTOR