©The Author(s) 2016. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Aug 28, 2016; 22(32): 7311-7321
Published online Aug 28, 2016. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v22.i32.7311
Published online Aug 28, 2016. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v22.i32.7311
Technical advances in external radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma
Shin-Hyung Park, Department of Radiation Oncology, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Jae-Chul Kim, Min Kyu Kang, Department of Radiation Oncology, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Author contributions: Park SH and Kang MK analyzed the literature and wrote the paper; Kim JC contributed to the critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No conflict of interest.
Correspondence to: Min Kyu Kang, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology, Kyungpook National University Medical Center, 807 Hoguk-ro, Buk-gu, Daegu 41404, South Korea. mkkang@knu.ac.kr
Telephone: +82-53-2002653 Fax: +82-53-2002029
Received: March 29, 2016
Peer-review started: April 2, 2016
First decision: May 30, 2016
Revised: June 21, 2016
Accepted: July 21, 2016
Article in press: July 21, 2016
Published online: August 28, 2016
Processing time: 148 Days and 11.7 Hours
Peer-review started: April 2, 2016
First decision: May 30, 2016
Revised: June 21, 2016
Accepted: July 21, 2016
Article in press: July 21, 2016
Published online: August 28, 2016
Processing time: 148 Days and 11.7 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Radiotherapy techniques have greatly improved in the last two decades. After the introduction of 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy, the use of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has increased substantially. Currently, more advanced techniques including intensity-modulated radiotherapy, stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy, charged particle therapy, and image-guided radiotherapy are increasingly used for the treatment of HCCs. These techniques facilitate the delivery of higher dose radiotherapy for early to advanced HCCs, while minimizing radiation-induced toxicities. This review will cover the technical aspects of modern radiotherapy techniques along with their clinical applications.