Real-life clinical practice with sorafenib in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a single-center experience

To evaluate the efficacy of sorafenib monotherapy, we enrolled 188 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who had undergone sorafenib monotherapy during a 3-year period from May 2009 to June 2012. Median overall survival was 15.6 months, and the 1- and 2-year survival rate was 54.4 and 32.2%, respectively, showing a relatively favorable treatment outcome. In addition, outcome was more favorable in earlier TNM stages. HCC patients with stage IVB had a better outcome than those with stage IVA, indicating the involvement of vascular invasion had poor prognosis. Outcome was more favorable in patients with Child-Pugh class A than in those with Child-Pugh class B. Patients in the long-term treatment group, who received sorafenib for ≥90 days, also showed a favorable outcome compared with those in the short-term treatment group, in which the administration period was <90 days. Multivariate analysis revealed treatment duration as a significant prognostic factor. Furthermore, patients who received post-sorafenib treatment had a better outcome than those who did not.