Table 1.

List of drugs and their targets used against HCC

S. No.	Name of the drug	Target molecule	Mechanism	Limitation	Year and references
1	Tamoxifen	Antagonist of estrogen receptor	To inhibit P-glycoprotein-mediated drug resistance	Minimum effect	2000 [88]
2	5-Fluoracil	Thymidylate synthase	Incorporated its metabolites into RNA and DNA	Requires co-treatment with leucovorin and methotrexate, to increase the anticancer activity of 5-Fu	2003 [89]
3	Thalidomide	VEGF, inhibits TNF-α synthesis, inhibition of Ikβ kinase activity	Anti-angiogenic activity and immune-modulatory	Fatigue, somnolence, constipation	2003, 2004 [90, 91]
4	Octreotide	Analogue of somatostatin receptors	Anti-tumor effect.	Somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR2) was found in some but not all patients with HCC	2004, 2006 [92, 93]
5	Sorafenib	Raf, VEGFR2, VEGFR3, PDGFRs	Inhibits tumor angiogenesis by blocking the activation of the tyrosine kinase receptors	Hypertension, diarrhea, proteinuria, skin-related toxicities, an increased risk for thromboembolism and bleeding events	2006, 2008 [10, 11]
6	Sunitinib	PDGFRs, KIT, RET, and FLT3	Inhibits tumor angiogenesis by blocking the activation of the tyrosine kinase receptors	Modest clinical efficacy	2009 [94]
7	Bevacizumab	VEGF	Blocks VEGF binding to its receptor	Low rate of response, gastrointestinal bleeding, including variceal bleeding	2009 [95]
8	Erlotinib, gefitinib and cetuximab	EGFR	Tyrosine kinase inhibitor, acts on the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)	Minimum effect	2009 [96]
9	Doxorubicin	DNA topoisomerase II inhibitors	Induce histone eviction	The use of single agents in therapy is practically non-existent currently because of its erratic and low response	2013 [97]
10	Cisplatin	DNA	Cross link with purine causes DNA damage and ultimately induces apoptosis	Allergic reactions, gastrointestinal disorders, decrease immunity to infections, kidney problems, hemorrhage	2014 [98]
11	Oxaliplatin	DNA	Binds to guanine and cytosine leading to cross-linking of DNA	Increase autophagy level results in a tumor resistance Reduction of DYRK2 promotes cell proliferation, and resistance to Oxaliplatin	2016 [99]