A PROSPECTIVE RANDOMIZED EVALUATION OF A COMPOUND OF TEGAFUR AND URACIL AS AN ADJUVANT CHEMOTHERAPY FOR HEPATOCELLULAR-CARCINOMA TREATED WITH TRANSCATHETER ARTERIAL CHEMOEMBOLIZATION

A prospective randomized trial was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of long-term oral administration of low-dose tegafur combined with ura cil as an adjuvant chemotherapy, following transcatheter arterial embo lization (TAE) in 40 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). For ty eligible patients were randomized into two groups: 20 with TAE plus UFT (a compound of tegafur 200 mg and uracil 448 mg per day) and 20 w ith TAE alone. A good necrosis rate or decrease in size of more than 7 0% of the original tumor mass was attained in 10 by TAE plus UFT arm a nd in 12 by TAE arm alone. As for the ''responded'' patients, there wa s no significant difference in the time from tumor response to tumor r egrowth between the two groups. The appearance rate of ascites and/or encephalopathy in patients with chemotherapy was slightly higher than that in control patients. The median survival time was 22.7 months for TAE plus UFT arm and 28.2 months for TAE arm alone. There was no sign ificant difference in the cumulative survival curves. In conclusion, t hese results indicated no substantial benefit for this chemotherapy re gimen, as an adjuvant therapy for patients with HCC during repeated TA E.