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©2013 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Hepatol. Jul 27, 2013; 5(7): 345-352
Published online Jul 27, 2013. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v5.i7.345
Published online Jul 27, 2013. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v5.i7.345
Mechanisms of resistance to sorafenib and the corresponding strategies in hepatocellular carcinoma
Bo Zhai, Xue-Ying Sun, The Hepatosplenic Surgery Center, Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150001, Heilongjiang Province, China
Author contributions: Zhai B and Sun XY solely contributed to this paper.
Supported by Grants from the National Natural Scientific Foundation of China, No. 30973474 and 81272467
Correspondence to: Xue-Ying Sun, MD, PhD, Professor, The Hepatosplenic Surgery Center, Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150001, Heilongjiang Province, China. kevsun88@hotmail.com
Telephone: +86-451-53643628 Fax: +86-451-53643628
Received: March 29, 2013
Revised: June 5, 2013
Accepted: June 13, 2013
Published online: July 27, 2013
Revised: June 5, 2013
Accepted: June 13, 2013
Published online: July 27, 2013
Core Tip
Core tip: The primary resistance of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to sorafenib is due to genetic heterogeneity. Thus, seeking predictive biomarkers and combining sorafenib with other anticancer agents for HCC have been launched with varying degrees of success. Sorafenib inhibits several kinase targets but it can also simultaneously or sequentially activate the addiction switches and compensatory pathways, inducing acquired resistance. Some other molecular targeted drugs have been used as second-line treatment for advanced HCC after the failure of sorafenib therapy. Further investigation on the crosstalk and relationship of associated pathways will better our understanding of the mechanisms accounting for sorafenib resistance in HCC.