Sorafenib versus transarterial chemoembolization as adjuvant therapies for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and microvascular invasion.

Abstract

244 Background: Microvascular invasion (MVI) is a risk factor for poor prognosis following curative resection in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Currently, there is no standard of care for patients with HCC and MVI. The present study compared the effectiveness of sorafenib and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) as adjuvant therapies following hepatic resection in patients with early and intermediate-stage HCC and MVI. Methods: This bi-center retrospective study examined 70 patients with HCC and MVI treated by hepatic resection between June 2009 and March 2018. Twenty-four patients received no postoperative adjuvant therapy (control), 19 received TACE and 27 received sorafenib. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared by the log-rank test. Results: Subjects consisted of 62 males and 8 females, with a median age of 53.5 (range, 28-82) years. The median follow-up was 26.0 (range, 4.1-103.1) months. RFS in the sorafenib group was significantly improved compared with the TACE group (P=0.048), but not with the control group. OS in the sorafenib group was significantly improved compared with both TACE (P=0.015; 2-year OS: 100% vs. 78.6%) and control (P=0.023; 2-year OS: 100% vs. 80.0%) groups. Conclusions: Adjuvant sorafenib following hepatic resection improved OS in patients with HCC and MVI and might be a better choice than adjuvant TACE.