AIM:To evaluate whether the application of sorafenib during the peri-operative period of liver transplantation improves prognosis in liver cancer patients.METHODS:We searched Pub Med,EMBASE and MEDLINE for eligible articles.A total of 4 studieswere found that fulfilled the previously agreed-upon standards.We then performed a systematic review and meta-analysis on the enrolled trials that met the inclusion criteria.RESULTS:Out of the 104 studies identified in the database,82 were not clinical experiments,and 18 did not fit the inclusion standards.Among the remaining 4 articles,only 1 was related to the preoperative use of sorafenib,whereas the other 3 were related to its postoperative use.As the heterogeneity among the 4 studies was high,with an I2 of 86%,a randomized effect model was applied to pool the data.The application of sorafenib before liver transplantation had a hazard ratio(HR) of 3.29 with a 95% confidence interval(CI) of 0.33-32.56.The use of sorafenib after liver transplantation had an HR of 1.44(95%CI:0.27-7.71).The overall pooled HR was 1.68(95%CI:0.41-6.91).CONCLUSION:The results showed that the use of sorafenib during the peri-operative period of liver transplantation did not improve patient survival significantly.In fact,sorafenib could even lead to a worse prognosis,as its use may increase the hazard of poor survival.
AIM:To evaluate whether the application of sorafenib during the peri-operative period of liver transplantation improves prognosis in liver cancer patients.METHODS:We searched Pub Med,EMBASE and MEDLINE for eligible articles.A total of 4 studieswere found that fulfilled the previously agreed-upon standards.We then performed a systematic review and meta-analysis on the enrolled trials that met the inclusion criteria.RESULTS:Out of the 104 studies identified in the database,82 were not clinical experiments,and 18 did not fit the inclusion standards.Among the remaining 4 articles,only 1 was related to the preoperative use of sorafenib,whereas the other 3 were related to its postoperative use.As the heterogeneity among the 4 studies was high,with an I2 of 86%,a randomized effect model was applied to pool the data.The application of sorafenib before liver transplantation had a hazard ratio(HR) of 3.29 with a 95% confidence interval(CI) of 0.33-32.56.The use of sorafenib after liver transplantation had an HR of 1.44(95%CI:0.27-7.71).The overall pooled HR was 1.68(95%CI:0.41-6.91).CONCLUSION:The results showed that the use of sorafenib during the peri-operative period of liver transplantation did not improve patient survival significantly.In fact,sorafenib could even lead to a worse prognosis,as its use may increase the hazard of poor survival.