EBRT strongly recommended as potential first-line therapy for patients with HCC confined to liver who are not candidates for curative therapy<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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TUESDAY, Jan. 18, 2022 (HealthDay News) — In a clinical practice guideline issued by the American Society for Radiation Oncology and published in the January issue of Practical Radiation Oncology<\/em>, recommendations are presented for the use of external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHC).<\/p>\n Smith Apisarnthanarax, M.D., from the University of Washington in Seattle, and colleagues developed a guideline to address five key questions focused on the indications, techniques, and outcomes of EBRT in HCC and IHC.<\/p>\n The researchers strongly recommend EBRT as a potential first-line treatment for patients with HCC confined to the liver who are not candidates for curative therapy; as consolidative therapy after incomplete response following liver-directed therapies; and as a salvage option for local recurrence. For patients with liver-confined multifocal or unresectable HCC or those with macrovascular invasion, EBRT is conditionally recommended, sequenced with systemic or catheter-based therapies. For symptomatic primary HCC and\/or macrovascular tumor thrombi, palliative EBRT is conditionally recommended. In carefully selected patients, EBRT is conditionally recommended as a bridge to transplant or before surgery. Consolidative EBRT with or without chemotherapy should be considered for patients with unresectable IHC. For resected IHC with high-risk features, adjuvant EBRT is conditionally recommended.<\/p>\n “We feel that this guideline is an important milestone in the management of primary liver cancers, as we hope to provide practitioners and the public with a systematic and evidence-based foundation of where EBRT might fit into the overall complex picture of treating these challenging cases,” Apisarnthanarax said in a statement.<\/p>\n Several authors disclosed financial ties to industry.<\/p>\n