International Journal of Clinical Oncology

, Volume 21, Issue 2, pp 213–218 | Cite as

Clinical trials of antiangiogenic therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma

Invited Review Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Angiogenesis is a promising therapeutic target to inhibit tumor growth. This review summarizes data from clinical trials of antiangiogenic agents in hepatocellular carcinoma. A systematic search of PubMed was performed to identify clinical trials of specific antiangiogenic agents in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment, particularly phase III trials involving treatment guidelines for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Sorafenib is the only systemic drug approved for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Two large-scale, randomized phase III trials using sorafenib involving patients with unresectable HCC showed a significant survival benefit compared with placebo control groups. However, subsequent phase III trials of antiangiogenic agents in hepatocellular carcinoma have failed to improve survival compared with standard treatment protocols using sorafenib. The efficacy of antiangiogenic agents in combination with other drugs, transarterial chemoembolization, and surgical resection is currently being investigated. Future research is expected to optimize antiangiogenic therapies in combination with standard treatment with sorafenib.

Keywords

Angiogenesis Antiangiogenic therapy Hepatocellular carcinoma Sorafenib 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

I thank Dr. Yokoo for his help with the preparation of the figure imagess.

Compliance with ethical standards

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Copyright information

© Japan Society of Clinical Oncology 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Gastroenterological Surgery I, Graduate School of MedicineHokkaido UniversitySapporoJapan

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