Doxorubicin induces tumorigenicity and chemotherapy resistance of residual hepatocellular carcinoma cells in vitro

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is a well-established therapeutic option in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with doxorubicin (DOX) as most widely used chemotherapeutic drug. Although patients undergoing TACE may have prolonged survival, local recurrence occurs in a significant number of cases. However, the tumorigenicity of residual HCC cells is not known and there exists no information regarding DOX-tolerance in case of second TACE-treatment. The aim of this study was to establish an in vitro model to study HCC cells, which escape doxorubicin therapy. Methods and Results: Initially, we de…