Management Strategies in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Dear Colleagues,

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains one of the most challenging malignancies worldwide and is currently the third leading cause of cancer-related mortality. Although the incidence of HCC has stabilized in some regions due to effective antiviral therapies and improved surveillance strategies, the global burden of disease is expected to rise again. This increase is largely driven by the growing prevalence of metabolic-dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease and alcohol-related liver disease, which are rapidly becoming dominant etiologies of chronic liver disease across many countries.

At the same time, the therapeutic landscape of HCC has undergone remarkable transformation. Over the past decade, major advances in surgical techniques, liver transplantation, locoregional therapies, radiation oncology and systemic treatments—particularly immune-checkpoint-inhibitor-based combinations—have significantly expanded available options. These developments have created new opportunities for multimodal and stage-adapted strategies but have also introduced complexity in clinical decision-making. In this evolving context, multidisciplinary collaboration and patient-centered care, including the integration of non-hospice palliative care, are more critical than ever. The field stands at a pivotal moment, making this an especially timely opportunity to synthesize emerging evidence and define future directions for research and practice.

This Special Issue aims to present and disseminate the most recent advances related to the multidisciplinary management of hepatocellular carcinoma across all disease stages. We consider contributions addressing clinical, translational and health system research that advance our understanding of optimal therapeutic sequencing, multimodal integration, biomarker-driven strategies and patient-centered models of care.

Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Advances in systemic therapies, including immunotherapy and combination regimens
• Integration of locoregional and systemic treatments
• Surgical resection and liver transplantation in evolving treatment algorithms
• Radiation therapy approaches and technological innovations
• Biomarkers, molecular profiling and precision oncology in HCC
• Management of HCC in the setting of metabolic-dysfunction-associated and alcohol-related liver disease
• Multidisciplinary care models and real-world implementation strategies
• Quality of life, supportive care and integration of non-hospice palliative care
• Health disparities, access to care and global perspectives in HCC management

We warmly invite you to contribute your expertise to this Special Issue and to share your latest research findings and insights with the broader scientific and clinical community. We believe your work will make valuable contributions to advancing the field and improving outcomes for patients with HCC.

We look forward to your participation.

Dr. Leonardo Gomes da Fonseca
Prof. Dr. Flair José Carrilho
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the Special Issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Medicina is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.