Can Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy Effectively Treat Hepatocellular Carcinoma? [ONCOLOGY GRAND ROUNDS]

The Oncology Grand Rounds series is designed to place original reports published in the Journal into clinical context. A case presentation is followed by a description of diagnostic and management challenges, a review of the relevant literature, and a summary of the authors’ suggested management approaches. The goal of this series is to help readers better understand how to apply the results of key studies, including those published in Journal of Clinical Oncology, to patients seen in their own clinical practice. A 78-year-old woman with a past medical history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) presented on routine examination to her family doctor with abnormal liver function tests. She was referred for liver ultrasound, which detected a liver mass. Multiphasic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diagnosed liver cirrhosis and a segment 7/8 lesion measuring 4 cm, suspicious for a hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), without evidence of portal hypertension. Child-Pugh (CP) score (ranging from 5 to 15) is a clinically relevant measure of synthetic liver function, based on international normalized ratio and albumin and bilirubin levels, as well as presence or absence of ascites and encephalopathy. A score of A5 or 6 is associated with better postoperative survival compared with CP B7 to 9 or CP C10 to 15, in which surgery is contraindicated. Her CP score was A6, based on a low albumin of 34 g/L. Platelets were slightly depressed at 121,000 μL, and alpha-fetoprotein level was 89 μg/L....
Source: Journal of Clinical Oncology - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Tags: Oncology Grand Rounds Source Type: research