Hepatic Artery Infusion Chemotherapy for Unresectable Hepatocelluar Carcinoma Who Failed to Systemic Therapy

Efficacy and Safety of Hepatic Artery Infusion Chemotherapy in Patients With Advanced or Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma Who Have Progressed or Are Intolerant to Systemic Therapy

There are limited treatment options for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who failed to the combination therapy with targeted agents plus anti-PD-1/PD-L1. Hepatic artery infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) had shown potent antitumor effects in single-centered studies when was used as first-line therapy. However, HAIC was not used as second or third-line therapy.

The combination therapy of anti-angiogenic agents and anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies had shown potent anti-tumor efficacy for unresectable or advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the treatment options were limited when patients were failed the combination therapies. Hepatic artery infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) had shown potent anti-tumor efficacy with an acceptable safety profile as a first-line treatment for patients with intermediated-stage or advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma. In this study, the investigators aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of HAIC were used in the late-line setting, i.e., after the failure of combination therapy with anti-angiogenic agents and anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosed histologically/cytologically, or meeting the clinical diagnostic criteria of the "Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (2019 Edition)."

• Unresectable or advanced hepatocellular carcinoma that was assessed by the investigator. Advanced hepatocellular carcinoma was defined as BCLC C stage or Chinese Liver Cancer stage (CNLC) IIIa or IIIb stage.

• Had at least one measurable lesion in the liver.

• Liver function Child-Pugh classification of A or B7.

• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-1.

• Patients who have received combination therapy with targeted agents combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors and have developed intolerable adverse effects or imaging confirmed intrahepatic tumor progression and have signed an informed consent form. Targeted agents include sorafenib, lenvatinib, donafenib, regorafenib, apatinib, bevacizumab (or biosimilar), and anlotinib; immune checkpoint inhibitors (mainly PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies) include pembrolizumab, nivolumab, camrelizumab, sintilimab, toripalimab, atezolizumab, and tislelizumab. Additional eligible subjects: subjects who have received at least one HAIC treatment were entered into safety evaluation (SAS); subjects who have received at least one imaging evaluation after treatment were entered into effectiveness evaluation (ITT).

• Adequate bone marrow and organ function. Reassessment of bone marrow and organ function as described above is required prior to each HAIC treatment.

  • Leukocytes ≥ 3 x 10^9/L within the last 14 days.
  • Platelets ≥ 50×10^9/L in the last 14 days without transfusion.
  • hemoglobin ≥ 90 g/L in the last 14 days without blood transfusion or erythropoietin administration.
  • total bilirubin ≤ 2 x the upper limit of normal (ULN)
  • albumin ≥ 30 g/L in the absence of human albumin or plasma transfusion within the last 14 days
  • AST and ALT ≤ 3 x ULN.
  • serum creatinine at ≤1.5×ULN.
  • International Normalized Ratio (INR) of prothrombin time ≤ 1.5×ULN.
  • Serum HBV DNA < 2 x 10^3 IU/mL; for HBV DNA > 2 x 10^3 IU/mL, treatment with nucleoside analogs for at least 1 week.

• Without grade 3 or higher adverse events (NCI CTCAE 4.0 criteria) induced by previous systemic therapy, or grade 3 or higher events reactions have recovered to grade 2 or lower.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pathologic diagnosed with mixed liver cancer, fibrous lamellar cell carcinoma or other non-hepatocellular malignancy component.
• Previous or concurrent other malignancies, except adequately treated non-melanotic skin cancer, carcinoma in situ of the cervix, and papillary thyroid cancer
• History of organ transplantation or hepatic encephalopathy.
• Hypersensitivity to iodine-containing contrast agents, oxaliplatin, calcium folinic acid, and fluorouracil.
• History of gastrointestinal perforation and/or fistula within 6 months, history of intestinal obstruction (including incomplete intestinal obstruction requiring parenteral nutrition), extensive bowel resection (partial colectomy or extensive small bowel resection complicated by chronic diarrhea), Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, or long-term chronic diarrhea.
• Uncontrollable hypertension, systolic blood pressure > 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure > 90 mmHg after optimal medical therapy, history of hypertensive crisis or hypertensive encephalopathy.
• Gastrointestinal bleeding due to portal hypertension within 6 months; G3 varices by gastrointestinal endoscopy within 3 months.
• Subjects requesting withdrawal of informed consent.
• Other circumstances that the investigator deems inappropriate for participation in the clinical trial.