A Phase I Dose-Finding Study of Silybin Phosphatidylcholine (Milk Thistle) in Patients With Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract

Short-term administration of silybin phosphatidylcholine in patients with advanced HCC resulted in detectable increases in silibinin and its metabolite, silibinin glucuronide. The maximum tolerated dose could not be established. Since patients died soon after enrollment, this patient population may have been too ill to benefit from an intervention designed to improve liver function tests.