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Semin intervent Radiol 2010; 27(3): 296-301
DOI: 10.1055/s-0030-1261788
© Thieme Medical Publishers

Combination Percutaneous and Intraarterial Therapy for the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Review

Lemore Carmi1 , Christos Georgiades1
  • 1Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland
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Publication History

Publication Date:
20 August 2010 (online)

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ABSTRACT

Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) and percutaneous ablation therapies have been shown to provide effective therapy and afford survival prolongation for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Both treatments, however, have inherent limitations that restrict their benefit; TACE is not a curative therapy and ablation efficacy is significantly limited by lesion size. Current treatment strategies aim to combine intraarterial and percutaneous liver-directed therapies synergistically to improve tumor response, and by extension improve patient survival. This article reviews the current literature on combination treatments, and examines the circumstances in which therapeutic combinations would improve tumor response and patient survival.

KEYWORDS

Hepatocellular carcinoma - chemoembolization - radiofrequency ablation - cryoablation - microwave

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Christos GeorgiadesM.D. Ph.D. 

Johns Hopkins Hospital

600 North Wolf Street, Blalock 545, Baltimore, MD 21287

Email: cgeorgi@jhmi.edu

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