Abstract
Purpose: To investigate whether local radiotherapy (RT) is valuable for patients with multiple hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs). Methods and Materials: From July 1992 to August 2006, 107 patients with unresectable HCC were treated with local RT after incomplete transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). The RT field included a main tumor with or without other tumor nodules, depending on the effectiveness of TACE. The median RT dose was 50.4Gy in conventional fractionation. Patients were categorized into four groups: Group 1, single tumor (39 patients); Group 2, multiple tumors within the RT field (25 patients); Group 3, controlled tumors out of the RT field (19 patients); and Group 4, tumors that remained viable out of the RT field (24 patients). Results: Group 1 showed the best survival rate (MST, 35 months; 2-year OS, 60%) and Group 4 the worst (MST, 5 months; 2-year OS, 16%). Group 2 and Group 3 showed similar survival (MST, 13 vs. 19 months; 2-year OS, 35% vs. 46%; p = 0.698). Significantly worse intrahepatic control in Group 4 was observed. The survival in Groups 2 and 3 (MST, 16 months) was significantly different from that in Group 4 (p = 0.004), and was marginally significant compared with that in Group 1 (p = 0.051). Conclusions: Local RT to the main tumor could be applicable in well-controlled intrahepatic tumors out of the RT field. Patients with viable intrahepatic tumors out of the RT field showed worse survival. In future clinical trials, these patients need to be excluded.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1433-1440 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics |
Volume | 77 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2010 Aug 1 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by a National R & D Program grant for cancer control, Ministry of Health and Welfare ( 0620390 ), and by a Korea Science and Engineering Foundation (KOSEF) grant funded by the Korean government (MOST) ( 2007-00299 ).
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Radiation
- Oncology
- Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
- Cancer Research