Hello

Welcome to the home page of the AHCC Trials Group!

Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is the 4th most common cancer in the world and is responsible for more than a million deaths yearly. There is however great geographical variation in the distribution of HCC and 80% of this cancer is found in many parts of the Asia-Pacific region. While surgical resection (and in some cases liver transplantation) offers patients with HCC the most consistent and significant survival advantage, only between 15 - 20 % of HCC are operable at the time of diagnosis.

Existing therapies for inoperable HCC have remained poorly efficacious and the median survival of inoperable patients remains low. Even with surgery, long term survival has remained poor. Recurrent carcinoma and progressive liver disease after liver resection contribute to the general unfavorable outcome. Chemoprevention in patients at high risk for HCC has also not been clearly established. There is thus an urgent need for more clinical trials in HCC (palliative, adjuvant and chemoprevention) to develop new and efficacious therapies, especially in parts of the world where the disease burden is highest.