Sorafenib combined with transarterial chemoembolization in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis and systematic review

Combination therapy of sorafenib and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has shown benefits in treating advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of TACE + sorafenib. MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and the ISI Web of Knowledge were searched (until 31 December 2013) for studies comparing TACE and TACE + sorafenib in treating patients with advanced HCC. Sensitivity and quality assessments were performed. Five comparative studies (2 were randomized control trials) that included 899 patients were used in the meta-analysis. Patients treated with TACE + sorafenib had better prognoses in terms of time to progression (TTP) compared to those with TACE + placebo or TACE alone; hazard ratios (HRs) ranged from 0.40 to 0.87, with the combined HR 0.61 (95 % CI 0.39-0.95, p = 0.031). However, the combined HR for overall survival (OS) did not differ significantly between patients treated with TACE + sorafenib and those with TACE + placebo or TACE alone (combined HR = 0.79, 95 % CI = 0.54-1.16, p = 0.235). Sensitivity analysis indicated the findings for TTP may be overly influenced by at least one of the studies. In summary, our meta-analysis found that TACE + sorafenib can improve TTP. We did not find the combined therapy improved OS. Additional randomized controlled studies are necessary to further investigate the clinical benefit of TACE + sorafenib in treating advanced HCC.