Hepatocellular carcinoma: Therapy and prevention

Table 1 Major etiologies of HCC

Chronic viral hepatitis B, C, D

Toxins (e.g., alcohol, aflatoxins)

Hereditary metabolic liver diseases (e.g., hereditary hemochromatosis,

α-1-antitrypsin deficiency)

Autoimmune hepatitis

Overweight, especially in males, and diabetes mellitus; nonalcoholic

steatohepatitis (NASH) or nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)

Table 2 Okuda stages I-III of HCC

Tumor mass	<50% of liver	≥50% of liver
Ascites	No	Yes
Albumin (g/L)	>3	≤3
Bilirubin (mg/dL)	<3	≥3
Points	0	1
Stage I	0 points
Stage II	1-2 points
Stage III	3-4 points

Table 3 Drugs evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of patients with HCC

5-Fluorouracil

Capecitabine

Doxorubicin

Epirubicin

Etoposide

Cisplatin

Gemcitabine

Mitoxantrone

Interferon alpha

Megestrol acetate

Tamoxifen

Octreotide

Thalidomide

Thymophysin

α-1-thymosin