Locoregional Therapies for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Several locoregional therapies (LRTs) for nonmetastatic hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are available; however, a global comparison of the relative efficacy of each is needed.

To conduct a systematic review and direct, pairwise meta-analytic comparison of all identified randomized clinical trials evaluating the treatment of nonmetastatic HCC.

A comprehensive search of PubMed and the proceedings of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and American Society for Radiation Oncology annual meetings from January 1, 2010, to November 1, 2023, was performed.

Randomized clinical trials using a form of LRT (surgery with or without adjuvant therapy, radiofrequency ablation [RFA], microwave ablation [MWA], radiotherapy [RT], hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy [HAIC], transarterial bland embolization [TAE], transarterial chemoembolization [TACE], or transarterial radioembolization [TARE]).

Study eligibility and data extraction were each reviewed by 2 authors independently. Random-effects meta-analyses were used to compare treatment categories.

Progression-free survival (PFS) was the primary outcome; overall survival (OS) was the secondary outcome.

Forty randomized clinical trials reporting on comparative outcomes of 11 576 total patients with localized HCC treated with LRT were included. The median follow-up was 30.0 (IQR, 18.5-40.8) months. Direct pooled comparisons between treatment classes suggested improved outcomes for surgery combined with adjuvant therapy over surgery alone (PFS: hazard ratio [HR], 0.62 [95% CI, 0.51-0.75]; P < .001; OS: HR, 0.61 [95% CI, 0.48-0.78]; P < .001), surgery over RFA (PFS: HR, 0.74 [95% CI, 0.63-0.87]; P < .001; OS: HR, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.54-0.95]; P = .02), RT over TACE (PFS: HR, 0.35 [95% CI, 0.21-0.60]; P < .001; OS: HR, 0.35 [95% CI, 0.13-0.97]; P = .04), and HAIC over TACE (PFS: HR, 0.57 [95% CI, 0.45-0.72]; P < .001; OS: HR, 0.58 [95% CI, 0.45-0.75]; P < .001). No substantial heterogeneity was noted for any pairwise comparison with the exception of RT-based regimens compared with tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy.

The findings of this systematic review and direct, pairwise meta-analysis suggest that all LRTs are not equivalent for the treatment of localized HCC. The efficacy of LRTs appears hierarchical, with surgery-based management outcomes associated with the best treatment outcomes and embolization-based treatment options associated with the worst treatment outcomes.