Radionuclide therapy of hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumour of the hepatocyte. It is a common malignancy worldwide and causes almost half a million deaths annually. Asia is a high risk area. Although surgery (hepatectomy or liver transplantation) is the main form of curative treatment, the majority of patients are not eligible for surgery due to extent of tumour and dysfunction of liver. Radiopharmaceuticals used for transarterial treatment of HCC were Yttrium-90 microspheres, Iodine-131 lipiodol, Rhenium-188 lipiodol, and Holmium-166 Chitosan complex. Yittrium-90 microspheres are glass or resin microspheres of mean sphere diameter of 20 to 30 micrometre. The activity administered was about 4 GBq. Reported response rate was about 20%, and median survival was 54 weeks. On inoperable tumours, reported objective response of I-131 lipiodol was 40 to 70%, and median survival was six to nine months. It showed efficacy similar to TACE. In adjuvant treatment following curative resection of HCC, reported three year survival was 86% compared with 46% for the control group. The administered activity in both adjuvant and inoperable HCC was about 2 GBq (55 mCi). Rhenium-188 lipiodol is a new radioconjugate, and using it we treated 70 patients with inoperable HCC. This treatment was a part of a multi-centre trial sponsored by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Partial response was obtained in 17% of cases, while 49% had stable disease at three months, and 34% showed disease progression. In terms of survival, 19% survived one year, 60% for six months, and 90% for three months. The mean activity was about 4.6 GBq (124 mCi). This method was safe and free from adverse effects.