Sorafenib is the only currently approved systemic therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of sorafenib therapy in patients with HCC under real-life conditions regarding patient, tumor characteristics, and any adverse events at study entry and at follow-up visits every 2 to 4 months. The current INSIGHT study is a noninterventional, prospective, multicenter, observational study performed in 124 sites across Austria and Germany between 2008 and 2014. Median overall survival and time to progression (RECIST) were found to be dependent on baseline Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) tumor stage (A: 29.2, B: 19.6, C: 13.6, D: 3.1 and A: 6.0, B: 5.5, C: 3.9, and D: 1.7 months, respectively), Child-Pugh liver function (A: 17.6, B: 8.1, C: 5.6 and A: 5.3, B: 3.3, C: 2.5 months, respectively), and performance status of the patient; however, age did not affect prognosis. Sorafenib-related adverse events at any grade occurred in 64.9% of patients, with diarrhea (35.4%), hand-foot-skin reaction (16.6%), nausea (10.3%), and fatigue (11.2%) occurring most frequently. Sorafenib treatment was shown to be effective in a real-life setting, in agreement with previously reported clinical trial data. The therapy was found to have an acceptable safety profile, with predominantly mild to moderate side effects. .
