Current management of hepatocellular carcinoma

After a long, hopeless period in the management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the diagnosis and treatment of HCC have progressed remarkably in the past decade. In particular the discovery of asymptomatic HCC in the early 1970s opened up a new era in clinical research of HCC. With the progress in the diagnostic imaging of liver tumors, a 1 cm hepatic mass can now be detected. It is especially worth noting that a 5-year survival rate of 72.9% has been achieved after the resection of the tumor in asymptomatic HCC patients. The role of surgery in the treatment of HCC has become more important. Various modalities of medical treatment and combination therapy have been recommended and used. Despite the progress in the early diagnosis and treatment of HCC, a complete cure is very rare. Problems to be studied include new tumor markers for the early detection of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)-negative HCC, the development of more specific treatments for unresectable HCC with uncompensated cirrhosis, and an effective approach to preventing recurrence and metastasis after radical resection.