[Clinical observation of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization plus sorafenib in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombosis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) plus sorafenib in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombosis. METHODS: A total of forty four patients of hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombosis were retrospectively analyzed. There were twenty one patients in the treatment group, and the patients took oral 0.4 g sorafenib twice a day 7 days before or 14 days after TACE. Twenty three patients of control group were treated by TACE without sorafenib. Disease control rate (DCR), overall survival (OS), time to tumor progression (TTP) and side effects were followed up. RESULTS: The times of TACE in the treatment group was more than that in the control group (2.5 ± 1.1 vs 1.8 ± 1.1, P = 0.019). DCR of the treatment group and the control group were 81.0% vs 26.1%, 47.6% vs 0, 19.0 vs 0, and 4.8% vs 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after TACE respectively, and the DCR of the treatment group were significantly higher than that of control group (P < 0.05). The median OS of the treatment group and the control group were (252 ± 32) d and (123 ± 18) d (P = 0.001) respectively. The median TTP of the treatment group and the control group were (187 ± 16) d and (71 ± 8) d (P = 0.000) respectively. Hand foot skin reaction and diarrhea of the treatment group and the control group were 90.5% vs 0 (P = 0.000) and 66.7% vs 8.7% (P = 0.000) respectively. CONCLUSION: Sorafenib is efficacious, and may prolong OS and TTP in hepatocellular carcinoma with PVTT treated by TACE.