Open AccessEvaluation of sorafenib treatment and hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a comparative study using the propensity score matching method
Author(s) -
Fukubayashi Kotaro,
Tanaka Motohiko,
Izumi Kazuhiro,
Watanabe Takehisa,
Fujie Satomi,
Kawasaki Takeshi,
Yoshimaru Yoko,
Tateyama Masakuni,
Setoyama Hiroko,
Naoe Hideaki,
Kikuchi Ken,
Sasaki Yutaka
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
cancer medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.403
H-Index - 53
ISSN - 2045-7634
DOI - 10.1002/cam4.476
Subject(s) - propensity score matching , medicine , hepatocellular carcinoma , sorafenib , gastroenterology , oncology , hepatology , tumor progression , chemotherapy , subgroup analysis , hccs , cancer , confidence interval
While sorafenib ( SFN ) is the established worldwide standard therapeutic agent for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma ( HCC ), hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy ( HAIC ) is also considered a favorable treatment for some advanced HCC s. This study aimed to evaluate each treatment and provide an optimal therapeutic choice for advanced HCC s. We analyzed 72 patients treated with SFN and 128 patients receiving HAIC . Both treatment groups were analyzed for prognostic and disease progression factors, and matched pair analysis was performed using the propensity score matching method. The preferable status of intrahepatic lesions, that is, no lesions or only a single (<3 cm) intrahepetic lesion, was positively associated with good prognosis and negatively associated with disease progression in the SFN group. Maximum tumor size (>5 cm) and low albumin (≤3.4 g/dL) were poor prognostic and disease progression factors in the HAIC group. Analysis of 53 patients selected from each of the SFN and HAIC groups based on the propensity score matching method showed no significant differences in survival or disease progression between the two matched subgroups. On the other hand, progression‐free survival ( PFS ) in the HAIC ‐matched subgroup was significantly longer than in the SFN ‐matched subgroup, particularly in patients with portal vein invasion ( PVI ) and/or without extrahepatic spread ( EHS ). The treatment efficacy of HAIC is similar to that of SFN regarding survival and disease progression. Longer PFS might be expected for HAIC compared with SFN , particularly in patients with PVI and/or without EHS .