Foreword

Article Outline

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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common cancer worldwide with few effective therapies for advanced disease. Increased understanding of the pathogenesis and dysregulation of the cellular pathways in this disease has laid the groundwork for evaluation of multiple targeted agents as potential therapies. Sorafenib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has recently shown clinical benefit in advanced HCC. He and coworkers present an excellent review of the current clinical trials evaluating targeted therapies and combinations of targeted agents with conventional chemotherapies in advanced HCC. This review also summarizes the available data about potential therapeutic targets and the rationale for the experimental treatment options being explored in this disease.