Sorafenib in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma

Czech version

Authors: G. Suchánková; J. Špičák
Authors‘ workplace: Klinika hepatogastroenterologie IKEM Praha, přednosta prof. MUDr. Julius Špičák, CSc.
Published in: Vnitř Lék 2011; 57(5): 485-490
Category: Reviews

Overview

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the 5th most frequent tumour disease and, at the same time, the 3rd most frequent cause of death from cancer worldwide. More than 600 000 new patients are diagnosed every year and more than 80% are diagnosed at an advance stage where surgical treatment is not indicated and systemic chemotherapy does not provide longer survival time. Sorafenib is the first substance that provides proven significant prolongation of survival time of HCC patients. This is a multikinase inhibitor with anti-proliferative and anti-angiogenic properties. Its efficacy was shown in the SHARP study that enabled licensing of sorafenib for the therapy of inoperable, metastasizing hepatocellular carcinoma, including patients with liver cirrhosis, functional class Child-Pugh A or B, in more than 60 countries worldwide, including the Czech Republic. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive summary of the current treatment of HCC and, at the same time, to point out some new therapeutic approaches that, in the near future, shall certainly play a major role in the treatment of HCC.

Key words:
hepatocellular carcinoma – SHARP study – sorafenib – biological treatment

Sources

1. Bruix J, Sherman M. Practice Guidelines Committee, American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Management of hepatocellular carcinoma. Hepatology 2005; 42: 1208–1236.

2. Jelic S. ESMO Guidelines Working Group. Hepatocellular carcinoma: ESMO Clinical Recommendations for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. Ann Oncol 2009; 20 (Suppl 4): 41–45.

3. Gish RG, Marrero JA, Benson AB. A multidisciplinary approach to the management of hepatocellular carcinoma. Gastroenterol Hepatol (NY) 2010; 6 (3 Suppl 6): 1–16.

4. Brůha R, Drastich P, Hůlek P. Diagnostika a léčba hepatocelulárního karcinomu. Vnitř Lék 2005; 12: 1406–1408.

5. Llovet JM, Brú C, Bruix J. Prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma: the BCLC staging classification. Semin Liver Dis 1999; 19: 329–338.

6. Asmis T, Balaa F, Scully L et al. Diagnosis and management of hepatocellular carcinoma: results of a consensus meeting of The Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre. Curr Oncol 2010; 17: 6–12.

7. Marrero JA. Applications and Limitations of Surgical and Regional Therapeutic Techniques. Clinical Roundtable Monograph 2010.

8. Furuse J. Sorafenib for the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma. Biologics 2008; 2: 779–788.

9. Bartoš J. Sorafenib. Remedia 2008; 4: 273–282.

10. Spangenberg H, Thimme R, Blum H. Evolving therapies in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. Biologics 2008; 2: 453–462.

11. Benson AB. Systemic Therapy for Advanced Stage Hepatocellular carcinoma. Clinical Roundtable Monograph 2010.

12. Llovet JM, Ricci S, Mazzaferro V et al. SHARP Investigators Study Group. Sorafenib in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. N Engl J Med 2008; 359: 378–390.

13. Cheng AL, Kang YK, Chen Z et al. Efficacy and safety of sorafenib in patients in the Asia-Pacific region with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a phase III randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Oncol 2009; 10: 25–34.

14. Valdivieso A, Bustamante J, Gastaca M et al. Management of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence After Liver Transplantation. Transplant Proc 2010; 42: 660–662.

15. Yuan R, Kay A, Berg WJ et al. Targeting tumorigenesis: development and use of mTOR inhibitors in cancer therapy. J Hematol Oncol 2009; 2: 45.

16. Clinical Trials.gov. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

17. Kudo M. Early detection and curative treatment of early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2005; 3 (10 Suppl 2): 144–148.

18. Lencioni R, Marrero J, Venook A et al. Design and rationale for the on-interventional Global investigation of Therapeutic DEcisions in Hepatocellular carcinoma and Of its Treatment with Sorafenib (GIDEON study). Int Clin Pract 2010; 64: 1034–1041.

19. Hsu CH, Shen YC, Lin ZZ et al. Phase II study of combining sorafenib with metronomic tegafur/uracil for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. J Hepatol 2010; 53: 126–131.

20. Fínek J. Erlotinib. Farmakoterapie 2005; 3: 206–207.

21. Thomas MB, Morris JS, Chadha R et al. Phase II trial of the combination of bevacizumab and erlotinib in patients who have advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. J Clin Oncol 2009; 27: 843–850.

22. Skelton MR, O’Neil B. Targeted therapies for hepatocellular carcinoma. Clin Adv Hematol Oncol 2008; 6: 209–218.

23. Siegel AB, Olsen SK, Magun A et al. Sorafenib: Where Do We Go From Here? Hepatology 2010; 52: 360–369.

24. Koeberle D, Montemurro M, Samaras P et al. Continuous Sunitinib treatment in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research (SAKK) and Swiss Association for the Study of the Liver (SASL) multicenter phase II trial (SAKK 77/06). Oncologist 2010; 15: 285–292.

25. Van De Wiele C, Defreyne L, Peeters M et al. Yttrium-90 labelled resin microspheres for treatment of primary and secondary malignant liver tumors. Q J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2009; 53: 317–324.

26. Hilgard P, Müller S, Hamami M et al. Selective internal radiotherapy (radioembolization) and radiation therapy for HCC – current status and perspectives. Z Gastroenterol 2009; 47: 37–54.

27. Sangro B, Bilbao JI, Iñarrairaegui M et al. Treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma by radioembolization using 90Y microspheres. Dig Dis 2009; 27: 164–169.

28. Česká onkologická společnost ČLS JEP. www.linkos.cz.