Transarterial Chemoembolization Combined with Iodine 125 Seeds Versus Transarterial Chemoembolization Combined with Radiofrequency Ablation in the Treatment of Early and Intermediate Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Background To compare the efficacy of the combination of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) and iodine 125 seeds implantation (TACE-Iodine 125) with the combination of TACE and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in the treatment of patients with early and intermediate hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods The study included 134 patients diagnosed with early and intermediate HCC from January 1, 2014, to May 31, 2018. Among them, 47 patients were treated with TACE-Iodine 125, and 87 with TACE-RFA and the efficacy of both treatments was analyzed. To reduced selective bias, propensity score matching (PSM) was used to compare the outcomes of the treatments. Results In the absence of PSM, the median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of the TACE-RFA group were slightly longer than those of the TACE-Iodine 125 group (OS: 42 months vs. 37 months; PFS: 18 months vs. 15 months). However, there was no significant difference in median OS, PFS, and the objective response rate (ORR) between the two groups (P&gt;0.05). After adjusted for age, gender, liver resection, Child-Pugh class, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage and Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), TACE-Iodine 125 treatment was not associated with a significant increasing in risk of death (HR: 0.725; 95%CI: 0.423,1.241, P=0.241) and recurrence (HR: 1.008; 95%CI: 0.666,1.526, P=0.969). After PSM, 47 patient pairs were generated, and there was no significant difference in median OS and PFS between the two groups. Conclusions The combination of TACE and iodine 125 seeds implantation may represent an effective treatment for patients with early and intermediate HCC.</jats:p>