SBRT Effective Option for Inoperable Hepatocelullar Carcinoma

A new study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology has shown that stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is an effective option for inoperable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).  

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of liver cancer, and most cases of HCC are secondary to either a viral hepatitis infection (hepatitis B or C) or cirrhosis (alcoholism being the most common cause of liver cirrhosis).  

The study was conducted because of the limited evidence guiding selection of nonsurgical treatment of HCC.  For the study, researchers analyzed data from patients with inoperable, nonmetastatic HCC who underwent image-guided SBRT.  

Results showed that one and two year freedom from local progression for tumors treated with SBRT were 97.4% and 83.3%, overall survival after treatment was 70% and 53%, there was no increase in tumor size, and complications only occurred in 5% of patients.  At the end of the study, authors concluded that SBRT appears to be a reasonable first-line treatment of inoperable HCC. 

At San Francisco CyberKnife, we treat liver cancer with SBRT using the CyberKnife® Radiosurgery System.  CyberKnife delivers high doses of radiation to both primary and metastatic liver tumors with extreme precision.  Working in conjunction with the CyberKnife System is the Synchrony® Respiratory Tracking System, which enables the radiation beam to track tumor movement in real time and allows patients to breathe normally during their treatment sessions.  CyberKnife allows physicians to zero in on a moving target – the liver tumor – and irradiate it while minimizing exposure to surrounding healthy tissue.  As a result, the CyberKnife treatment is more comfortable for patients, radiation is delivered more accurately, and treatments can be completed in one to five sessions.  

To learn more about how San Francisco CyberKnife treats liver cancer, and watch a CyberKnife patient education video on liver cancer, please click here.