Multicenter collaborative clinical trials in pediatric liver tumors and use of a cloud-based teleradiology system for surgical review

Abstract

In multicenter clinical trials for hepatoblastoma, accurate PRETEXT is critical for assigning patients to the correct risk groups and providing appropriate treatment. Accurate imaging is also necessary to determine the optimal surgical treatment. Thus, quality-assured radiological diagnoses based on state-of-the-art imaging studies are mandatory for the success of clinical trials. To ensure accurate risk classification and evaluation of response, the JCCG Liver Tumor Committee has recently adopted a teleradiology system for central radiologic diagnosis of all patients. Surgical therapy consultation based on this imaging information is also being undertaken. These efforts are world-leading and will be indispensable in future international collaborative clinical studies in which standardization of diagnostic imaging and surgical treatment is required.