Transcatheter oily chemoembolization for the treatment of large hepatocellular carcinoma with an accompanying tumor thrombus in the right main branch of the portal vein and arterioportal shunting: report of one patient still surviving after more than seven years.

A patient having a large hepatocellular carcinoma with an accompanying tumor thrombus in the right main branch of the portal vein and arterioportal shunting was treated with transcatheter oily chemoembolization with adriamycin emulsion in Lipiodol plus Gelfoam. The whole right hepatic lobe regressed together with the tumor, and the tumor thrombus in the portal vein disappeared. The patient is still alive more than seven years after the treatment, with normal levels of alpha-fetoprotein. The response of this patient is interesting in discussing potential indications for therapy.