Raltitrexed in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Mechanistic Rationale and Clinical Evidence from Arterial-Based Therapies. (PubMed, J Hepatocell Carcinoma)
Compared with 5-fluorouracil, raltitrexed offers distinct pharmacokinetic and practical advantages, including prolonged intracellular retention and a short infusion schedule...Accumulating evidence from retrospective studies, prospective single-arm trials, and limited comparative analyses suggests that raltitrexed-based regimens demonstrate meaningful antitumor activity in conventional and drug-eluting bead TACE, as well as in oxaliplatin-based HAIC, with objective response rates, disease control, and survival outcomes comparable to established chemotherapy protocols...Overall, raltitrexed represents a rational and increasingly utilized component of arterial-based therapies for unresectable HCC. However, current evidence is predominantly derived from retrospective and single-arm studies, and well-designed randomized trials and biomarker-driven approaches are required to define its optimal role in clinical practice.