Effect of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization combined with interferon adjuvant therapy in treatment of advanced primary liver cancer: a meta-analysis

Objective To investigate the effect of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization( TACE) combined with interferon( IFN) adjuvant therapy in the treatment of advanced primary liver cancer,and to provide new ideas for adjuvant therapies after TACE. Methods The databases including Cochrane Library,Pub Med,Medline,Embase,CNKI,Wanfang Data,and VIP were searched to obtain all articles published before January 2015,and the randomized controlled trials( RCTs) about the comparison between TACE combined with IFN and TACE alone published in journals at home and abroad were included. Quality assessment and data extraction were performed for these articles,and Revman 5. 1 software was applied for the meta- analysis. Results A total of 6 RCTs were included,consisting of 311 patients in the IFN adjuvant therapy group and 308 patients in the placebo group. The results of the meta- analysis showed that compared with the placebo group,the IFN adjuvant treatment group had significantly lower 1-,2-,and 3- year recurrence rates and a significantly higher 1- year survival rate( P = 0. 006,0. 002,0. 002,and 0. 030). Conclusion IFN adjuvant therapy can reduce the risk of liver cancer recurrence after TACE and improve the patients' survival rate.