Portal Vein Stenting Combined with (125)I Particle Chain Implantation Followed by As(2)O(3) in the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Portal Vein Tumour Thrombus

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility and safety of portal vein stenting (PVS) combined with (125)I particle chain implantation and sequential arsenic trioxide (As(2)O(3)) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with portal vein tumour thrombus (PVTT) by transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). METHODS: From January 2015 to January 2018, the clinical data of 30 patients with HCC complicated by PVTT were retrospectively analysed (26 men and 4 women). The laboratory examinations, incidence of adverse events, cumulative survival rate, and stent patency were analysed for all enrolled patients. RESULTS: The success rate of interventional treatment in all patients was 100%. The results of the laboratory tests before and 1 week after surgery showed that the mean concentrations of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) decreased from 50.9 U/L ± 25.8 to 41.8 U/L ± 21.6 (P < 0.001) and 57.6 U/L ± 19.9 to 44.2 U/L ± 26.1 (P < 0.001) and 57.6 U/L ± 19.9 to 44.2 U/L ± 26.1 ( CONCLUSION: PVS combined with (125)I particle chain implantation followed by TACE with As(2)O(3) is safe and feasible for patients with PVTT. The long-term efficacy of this treatment needs to be further studied.