Treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma with adriamycin. Preliminary communication.

In a Phase II clinical trial, 14 patients with histologically proven primary hepatocellular carcinoma were treated with adriamycin administered intravenously at a dose of 75 mg/m2 every 3 weeks. All 11 evaluable patients responded with 3 exhibiting complete tumor regression after two, three, and five courses of adriamycin respectively. The remission durations for these 3 were 3, 6, and 7 months, and their survivals were 8, 9, and 13 months, respectively. The median survival of the evaluable patients is 8 months (range 1-13 months). The side effects encountered included myelosuppression, anorexia, nausea, vomiting, and alopecia. Adriamycin seems to be an effective agent in hepatocellular carcinoma. Further trials are underway to test its true efficacy both singly and in combination with other drugs in the management of this tumor.