A Comparison of Chemoembolization Combination With and Without Radiotherapy for Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

The article discusses the effective use of combination chemoembolization and focal radiation therapy for patients with unresectable, but locally confined, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Eighty percent of HCCs arise in the presence of chronic liver inflammation, the majority secondary to Hepatitis B and C infection. Transarterial chemoembolization of liver tumors exploits the relative difference in blood supply to liver tumors and hepatic parenchyma, with hepatic tumors obtaining over 80 percent of their blood supply from the hepatic artery, in contrast to the 30 percent for normal hepatic tissue.