Recent data show that the incidence of liver cancer in China accounts for 55% of the world, and the number of liver cancer deaths accounts for 45% of the world. The mortality rate of liver cancer has surpassed that of gastric cancer to top the mortality rate of digestive tract malignant tumors in China and ranked the 2nd among all malignant tumors. ”Such a high mortality rate of liver cancer is related to late detection and missing the best time for early treatment.” Professor Lin Lizhu, director of the Oncology Center of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, pointed out that since most of the early liver cancer patients have no obvious symptoms or even no symptoms, the onset is indeed relatively insidious. A few of them show symptoms such as loss of appetite, abdominal distension and weakness, which are easily treated as ordinary stomach diseases, and some of them are too lazy to even go to hospitals and buy stomach medicine on their own to take them, not taking them too seriously. Therefore, clinically, many patients realize the seriousness of the disease only when they develop liver pain, wasting or even jaundice, and when diagnosed, they are often already in the middle to late stage, missing the best time for surgical treatment. Although there are many treatment methods, each has its own limitations In terms of treatment, although there are many treatment methods for primary liver cancer, each has its own limitations. For patients with early stage liver cancer, surgical resection is the best treatment. For patients with intermediate to advanced stage liver cancer, about 80% of them are not suitable for surgical treatment after diagnosis, and transcatheter hepatic artery chemoembolization and liver radiofrequency ablation are still the common means of non-surgical treatment. However, the blood supply to liver cancer lesions is very rich and there are many collateral circulations, so it is difficult to completely inactivate the tumor by either minimally invasive intervention or radiation therapy. For example, studies have shown that transcatheter hepatic artery chemoembolization can necrosis about 30%-50% of the tumor, but only 2% of the tumor cells are completely inactivated. Repeated transcatheter hepatic artery chemoembolization can further damage liver function and accelerate the progression of cirrhosis. In addition to interventional and radiotherapy, only sorafenib is currently approved as an oral drug for the treatment of intermediate to advanced liver cancer, but it costs about 50,000 yuan for a one-month course of treatment, and patients can only apply for free continuation after two consecutive months of treatment. And from the current treatment effect, the median survival period is only about 6 months, which means that 50% of the patients taking this drug can survive about 6 months. Chinese medicine with interventional treatment, liver preservation and tumor suppression to prolong survival “For most patients in the middle and late stages, multidisciplinary and standardized comprehensive treatment has become the consensus of the medical community.” According to Lin Lizhu, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine has taken the lead in carrying out the “Eleventh Five-Year Plan” of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Five” Key Specialties Liver Cancer Collaborative Group validation, from January 2006 to January 2013, over a period of seven years, 15 hospitals in the United Nations, using a multicenter, retrospective cohort study to analyze the survival time of patients with advanced liver cancer in three cohorts: Chinese medicine group, Chinese and Western medicine group and Western medicine group. The results showed that the median survival was 214 days for the TCM group, 189 days for the Western medicine group, and up to 312 days for TCM plus local minimally invasive treatment. This study suggests that the involvement of Chinese herbal medicine in the treatment showed better efficacy. ”Based on this study, we believe that combined Chinese and Western medicine treatment is the preferred treatment option for mid- to late-stage liver cancer.” Lin Lizhu said the study results showed that some Chinese medicines can affect the synthesis of DNA of liver cancer cells and have an inhibitory effect on their proliferation; in addition, Chinese medicine with intervention can reduce the damage of liver function, protect the residual liver function of patients, improve the treatment effect of liver cancer and the quality of life of patients, and prolong the survival of patients. Lin Lizhu’s clinical observation shows that many cancer patients often turn to TCM only when they have exhausted all modern medical methods such as surgery and radiotherapy and are “out of options”. “It is actually a misconception to treat TCM as the last resort for cancer.” According to Lin Lizhu, TCM emphasizes evidence-based treatment and “holistic” treatment concept, which can complement and supplement surgery, radiotherapy and other treatment methods when properly applied. Take hepatocellular carcinoma treatment as an example, the recurrence rate is still as high as 50% in 5 years after surgery to remove the lesion in early stage. Immediately after surgery, Chinese medicine treatment can help to strengthen the spleen and protect the liver, which can improve the immunity of patients, promote the recovery of internal organs and reduce the recurrence rate; while for liver cancer patients in radiotherapy stage, Chinese medicine treatment can reduce the side effects of drugs and help to improve their quality of life and survival.