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World J Hepatol. Dec 27, 2014; 6(12): 844-850
Published online Dec 27, 2014. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v6.i12.844
Transarterial chemoembolization for hepatocellular carcinoma: A review of techniques
Norihiro Imai, Masatoshi Ishigami, Yoji Ishizu, Teiji Kuzuya, Takashi Honda, Kazuhiko Hayashi, Yoshiki Hirooka, Hidemi Goto
Norihiro Imai, Masatoshi Ishigami, Yoji Ishizu, Teiji Kuzuya, Takashi Honda, Kazuhiko Hayashi, Yoshiki Hirooka, Hidemi Goto, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Aichi 466-8560, Japan
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this manuscript.
Correspondence to: Masatoshi Ishigami, MD, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 466-8560, Japan. masaishi@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Telephone: +81- 52-7442169 Fax: +81-52-7442178
Received: August 12, 2014
Revised: October 7, 2014
Accepted: October 28, 2014
Published online: December 27, 2014
Processing time: 122 Days and 22.9 Hours
Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant diseases worldwide. While curative therapies, including resection, liver transplantation, and percutaneous ablation (percutaneous ethanol injection and radiofrequency ablation), are applicable for only a portion of the HCC population, transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been recognized as an effective palliative treatment option for patients with advanced HCC. TACE is also used even for single HCCs in which it is difficult to perform surgical resection or locoregional treatment due to systemic co-morbidities or anatomical problems. TACE has become widely adopted in the treatment of HCC. By using computed tomography-angiography, TACE is capable of performing diagnosis and treatment at the same time. Furthermore, TACE plays an important role in the multidisciplinary treatment for HCC when combined with other treatment. In this review, we first discuss the history of TACE, and then review the previous findings about techniques of achieving a locoregional treatment effect (liver infarction treatment, e.g., ultra-selective TACE, balloon-occluded TACE), and the use of TACE as a drug delivery system for anti-cancer agents (palliative, e.g., platinum complex agents, drug-eluting beads) for multiple lesions.

Keywords: Hepatocellular carcinoma; Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization; Balloon-occluded transcatheter arterial chemoembolization; Drug-eluting bead

Core tip: Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) has become widely adopted in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). By using computed tomography-angiography, TACE is capable of performing diagnosis and treatment at the same time. Furthermore, TACE plays an important role in the multidisciplinary treatment for HCC when combined with other treatment. In this review, we first discuss the history of TACE, and then review the previous findings about techniques of achieving a locoregional treatment effect (liver infarction treatment, e.g., ultra-selective TACE, balloon-occluded TACE), and the use of TACE as a drug delivery system for anti-cancer agents (palliative, e.g., platinum complex agents, drug-eluting beads) for multiple lesions.