Abstract: Objective To investigate the therapeutic effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) patients undergoing transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Methods Seventy-two HCC patients undergoing TACE were divided into 2 groups. On the basis of conventional therapy, the control group was treated with diammonium glycyrrhizinate intravenous infusion, and the observation group was treated with NAC. The changes of oxidative stress, T lymphatic subsets and liver function indexes were recorded. Results After 4-week treatment, the levels of serum superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), CD3⁺, CD4⁺ and CD4⁺/CD8⁺ in observation group were significantly increased, while the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and CD8⁺ in observation group were significantly decreased (P<0.05). The levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and total bilirubin (TBIL) in observation group were significantly lower than those in control group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the levels of albumin (ALB) and fibrinogen (FIB) between the 2 groups (P>0.05). There was no significant difference in adverse drug reactions (ADR) between the 2 groups (P>0.05). Conclusion NAC can inhibit the oxidative stress level, regulate cellular immune function and improve the liver function of HCC patients undergoing TACE, and it has high safety.

Key words: Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization, N-acetylcysteine, Oxidative stress, Immune function, Liver function