Transarterial Ethanol Ablation (TEA) Versus Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolisation (TACE) for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Inclusion Criteria:

Patient factor

* Age \> 18
* Child-Pugh A or B cirrhosis
* ECOG performance status Grade 2 or below
* No serious concurrent medical illness
* No prior treatment (including surgery) for HCC

Tumor factor

* Histologically or cytologically proven HCC (an alphafetoprotein level \> 500 ug/ml in the presence of radiological findings suggestive of HCC in a patient with chronic HBV or HCV infection can be considered eligible at investigator's discretion)
* Unresectable and locally advanced disease without extra-hepatic disease
* Massive expansive or nodular tumor morphology with measurable lesion on CT
* Size of largest tumor \<= 15cm in largest dimension
* Number of main tumor \<= 5, excluding associated small satellite lesions.

Exclusion Criteria:

Patient factor

* History of prior malignancy except skin cancer
* History of significant concurrent medical illness such as ischemic heart disease or heart failure
* History of acute tumor rupture
* Serum creatinine level \> 180 umol/L
* Presence of biliary obstruction not amenable to percutaneous drainage
* Child-Pugh C cirrhosis

Evidence of poor liver function

* History of hepatic encephalopathy, or
* Intractable ascites not controllable by medical therapy, or
* History of variceal bleeding within last 3 months, or
* Serum total bilirubin level \> 50 umol/L, or
* Serum albumin level \< 28g/L, or
* INR \> 1.3

Tumor factor

* Presence of extrahepatic metastasis
* Predominantly infiltrative lesion
* Diffuse tumor morphology with extensive lesions involving both lobes.

Vascular complications

* Hepatic artery thrombosis, or
* Partial or complete thrombosis of the main portal vein, or
* Tumor invasion of portal branch of contralateral lobe, or
* Hepatic vein tumor thrombus, or
* Significant arterioportal shunt not amenable to shunt blockage, or
* Significant arteriovenous shunt not amenable to shunt blockage