FOCUS: Researchers to compare two cancer treatment methods+

FOCUS: Researchers to compare two cancer treatment methods+

TOKYO, July 6 Kyodo -
University specialists have started conducting research on two surgical methods
currently available to deal with hepatoma, a tumor of the liver that is common
in East Asian patients.

The study conducted beginning this year by specialists at the University of
Tokyo and others is to compare conventional surgical techniques to remove
cancerous tissues from the liver in early development with radiofrequency
ablation, or RFA, a medical procedure in which surgeons insert a needle into
the liver to destroy the abnormal tumor or tissues by heat.
Many liver cancer patients are said to be in East Asia but in many instances
the disease is reported to have been discovered in its early development in
Japan.
But there is no precise standard for the utilization of the methods and the
decision on which techniques should be adopted is made according to surgeons'
preferences and their strengths.
Researchers will seek cooperation from patients in the early stages of cancer
growth and verify effectiveness of the two methods by comparing them from the
standpoint of the rate of cancer recurrence and survival.
Norihiro Kokudo, the University of Tokyo's hepato-pancrea surgery department,
said hospitals participating in the research are specialized in liver cancer
and are well-prepared in providing patients with post-therapy health management
and treatment in the event of recurrence.
''We would like those who are wondering which of the two methods they want to
use to participate in the research for the sake of those who might become
patients in the near future,'' he said.
University of Tokyo Hospital officials said patients undergoing either surgical
procedure will pay about the same amount of money for the operation and that
there will be no preferential treatment in terms of the cost.
According to the research plan, 75 hospitals across the country will register
in the next three years 600 patients who agree to cooperate with the study.
They will be selected from patients aged from 20 to 80 diagnosed as having one
to three cancerous tumors measuring 3 centimeters or smaller in size.
The number of patients will be divided 300 each into two groups at random in
order for researchers to scientifically compare the effect of treatment
featuring the two methods.
They must also be in normal condition except for deteriorated liver functioning
and have no obvious lesions except for the liver.
Researchers will analyze and release information on the difference of the rate
of cancer recurrence three years after the registration of patients. They will
analyze and announce the rate of survival two years after.
Those who need to receive a second treatment due to a recurrence of the disease
will be able to freely choose one of the two techniques.
Kokudo said surgeons can remove cancerous tumors with certainty after visually
inspecting them but the burden imposed on patients is relatively heavy and it
takes time for them to recover.
He said wounds resulting from the RFA treatment are small and patients can
achieve a quick recovery but it tends to easily show a difference in surgeons'
skills because they can only confirm the existence of cancer from visual
imagery of echo inspection.
Kokudo also said that there is a tendency among Japanese surgeons to cut off
big cancerous tissues when patients' liver functioning remains good, while they
resort to the RFA treatment if the liver is small and not functioning well.
==Kyodo