There’s usually little doctors can do to effectively treat patients with late-stage cancer.
However, researchers at the University of Hong Kong claim to have developed an effective new treatment for stage four liver cancer.
The treatment reportedly works by shrinking a stage four liver tumour to a smaller, more operable size.
Doctors can then perform a liver transplant on the patient, setting them on the road to recovery.
As a result, the success rate of treatment for such advanced liver cancer has purportedly increased from 10% to 50% or 60%.
Stage four cancer, also known as advanced, late-stage, and terminal cancer, is the most severe stage of the illness.
According to RTHK, around 70% of all patients with late-stage liver cancer cannot be operated on due to the sheer size of the tumours.
Doctors could only successfully treat about 10% of the patients with existing methods.
Researchers from the University of Hong Kong, however, claimed a breakthrough, reported the South China Morning Post.
Source: South China Morning Post
The team from the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine announced the successful treatment of a late-stage liver cancer patient on Wednesday (13 Dec).
In November 2022, doctors gave 65-year-old Wong Lok-wing six months to live.
The Standard reported that Mr Wong suffered from stage four cancer, with a tumour over 18cm long across his liver that was too big to operate on.
Source: The Standard
In a last-ditch effort, doctors utilised a new approach.
They combined stereotactic body radiation therapy with immunotherapy and reduced his cancer back to stage one over a few months.
In August 2023, Mr Wong underwent surgery, receiving a liver transplant and becoming cancer-free.
“There is actually no other effective treatment to shrink any stage-four cancer to stage one at the moment,” said Professor Albert Chan, co-lead of the research team.
This would be the first in the world.
The team claimed that the new treatment increased success rates from 10% to 50% or 60%.
They held confidence in the treatment and hoped to continue improving the treatment efficacy to 80%.
“The team is honoured to provide new hope and possibilities for the treatment of liver cancer,” Professor Chan said.
Hopefully, this will pave the way for more types of advanced cancer treatments to be developed soon.
Also read: S’pore Father With Stage 4 Cancer Outlives Doctor’s Diagnosis By 2 Years, Stays Positive Amid Battle
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Featured image adapted from South China Morning Post and The Standard.
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