Cancers 2012, 4(2), 549-565; doi:10.3390/cancers4020549
Review

Potentiality and Boundaries of Use of Sorafenib in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Awaiting the Results of Ongoing Clinical Trials

Massimo Di Maio 1 email, Gennaro Daniele 1 email, Maria Carmela Piccirillo 1 email, Pasqualina Giordano 1 email, Giuseppe Signoriello 2 email, Bruno Daniele 3 email and Francesco Perrone 1,* email
1 Clinical Trials Unit, National Cancer Institute—“G. Pascale” Foundation, via Mariano Semmola, Napoli 80131, Italy 2 Medical Statistics, Second University, v. L. Armanni 5, Napoli 80138, Italy 3 Medical Oncology Unit, “G.Rummo” Hospital, Benevento 82100, Italy
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 8 May 2012; in revised form: 25 May 2012 / Accepted: 30 May 2012 / Published: 5 June 2012
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Research Progress in Hepatocellular Carcinoma)
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Abstract: No systemic therapy had been proven effective in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) until 2007, when a large randomized trial with sorafenib demonstrated a clinically relevant prolongation of survival. Currently, sorafenib represents standard treatment for patients with advanced HCC and well-preserved liver function, whilst the evidence about its effectiveness in patients with more severe liver impairment is less robust. A randomized trial to demonstrate the efficacy of sorafenib in Child-Pugh B patients with advanced HCC is currently ongoing. In the meantime, several trials are testing the role of sorafenib in early HCC (as adjuvant treatment after potentially curative loco-regional therapies) and in intermediate stage (exploring different modalities of integration of sorafenib with trans-arterial chemo-embolization). The results of all these trials will better define the potentiality and the boundaries of use of sorafenib in HCC patients.
Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma; sorafenib; Child-Pugh B patients; trans-arterial chemo-embolization

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Di Maio, M.; Daniele, G.; Piccirillo, M.C.; Giordano, P.; Signoriello, G.; Daniele, B.; Perrone, F. Potentiality and Boundaries of Use of Sorafenib in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Awaiting the Results of Ongoing Clinical Trials. Cancers 2012, 4, 549-565.

AMA Style

Di Maio M, Daniele G, Piccirillo MC, Giordano P, Signoriello G, Daniele B, Perrone F. Potentiality and Boundaries of Use of Sorafenib in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Awaiting the Results of Ongoing Clinical Trials. Cancers. 2012; 4(2):549-565.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Di Maio, Massimo; Daniele, Gennaro; Piccirillo, Maria Carmela; Giordano, Pasqualina; Signoriello, Giuseppe; Daniele, Bruno; Perrone, Francesco. 2012. "Potentiality and Boundaries of Use of Sorafenib in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Awaiting the Results of Ongoing Clinical Trials." Cancers 4, no. 2: 549-565.

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