Blood markers that may track response to TACE treatment in liver cancer
Studies blood markers in adults with hepatocellular carcinoma receiving TACE treatment.
Key facts
- Who runs it
- University of Belgrade
- Where
- Belgrade, SerbiaSee the site
- Trial code
- Registry title
- Exploratory Blood-Based Biomarkers in TACE-Treated Hepatocellular Carcinoma
- Status
- Recruiting
- People taking part
- 15 people, planned
- Started
- 21 Aug 2024
- Planned end
- 1 Jun 2026
- Type of study
- Observational
- Record updated
- 5 February 2026
Who can take part
AI summary
From the trial's eligibility criteria. Machine-read from the registry text on this page, so it can be wrong. The registry text below and the trial team decide who can take part.
The trial is looking for adults with hepatocellular carcinoma (a type of liver cancer) who will have TACE treatment as part of their usual care. Blood samples are taken to study biomarkers.
- Age
- 18 years or older
- Sex
- All sexes
- Disease stage
- Hepatocellular carcinoma confirmed by CT/MRI (LI-RADS v2018) or tissue examination. Candidate for TACE under BCLC criteria. Child-Pugh score 7 or lower. ECOG performance status 0.
Main reasons for not taking part
- Child-Pugh score 8 or higher
- ECOG performance status above 0
- Cancer spread outside the liver or invasion of large blood vessels
- TACE not technically possible, for example the feeding artery cannot be found
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding
The registry criteria, word for word
Show all 14 criteriaShow less
Who can take part
- Age ≥ 18 years
- Diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) based on LI-RADS CT/MRI v2018 criteria or histopathological verification
- Candidate for TACE as part of standard treatment (BCLC criteria)
- Child-Pugh score ≤ 7 at the time of TACE indication
- ECOG performance status 0 at the time of TACE indication
- Availability of at least one follow-up multiphase CT or MRI scan 4-8 weeks after TACE
Who cannot take part
- Severe allergy or contraindication to iodine contrast agent or drugs used during TACE
- Child-Pugh score ≥8 at the time of TACE indication
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status > 0 at the time of TACE indication
- Presence of extrahepatic dissemination and/or macrovascular invasion
- Technically unfeasible TACE (e.g., inability to identify feeder artery)
- Severe uncorrectable coagulopathy or cytopenia
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding
- Inability to provide signed informed consent
Where in Serbia
- KBC Bežanijska kosaBelgrade, SerbiaContact: Jovana Popović, Medical DoctorTaking people
About the trial
What the trial wants to find out
The goal of this observational study is to evaluate changes in selected biomarkers and their potential connection with early radiological outcomes in adult patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are candidates for Transarterial Chemoembolization (TACE) treatment. The main questions it aims to answer are whether specific biomarkers change in response to TACE treatment and if there is a correlation between these changes and early radiological treatment response as measured by Modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (mRECIST) criteria. Participants will undergo standard-of-care TACE as decided by a multidisciplinary team and will provide blood samples at predefined, clinically relevant time points, specifically before the first TACE procedure and during subsequent follow-up cycles on the day of either a new TACE or a control Computed Tomography (CT) scan. Additionally, participants will undergo routine clinical and radiological assessments, including multiphase CT or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans four to eight weeks after the procedure to monitor treatment success, with all data being collected from medical records and standard diagnostic procedures.
The group in the trial
- HCC Patients Treated With TACE
Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are candidates for transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) as part of their standard clinical care. This group includes adult patients with preserved liver function (Child-Pugh ≤ 7) and good performance status Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) 0.
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations
Print a page for my doctorData and sources
- Registry record
- Listed on ClinicalTrials.gov.
- Official title
- Blood-Based Biomarkers for Prediction and Monitoring of Response to TACE in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Pilot Study
- Plain-language title
- Blood markers that may track response to TACE treatment in liver cancerGenerated from the registry record. The registry title is the official one.
- AI summary
- From the trial's eligibility criteria. Read by machine on 13 November 2026.
- Record updated
- 5 February 2026