Characteristics and outcomes of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma treated on phase I trials.

Abstract

281 Background: Patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have limited effective therapies. With that purpose, we analyzed the outcomes and prognostic factors of such pts treated on phase I trials w an emphasis on locoregional and targeted agents. Methods: We reviewed the records of 100 consecutive pts referred to the Phase I Clinical Trials Program from March 2004 and assessed characteristics, types of clinical trials, progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and oncogenic mutations. Results: Of 100 referred pts, 39 were not treated mainly due to poor performance status (n=22). Of 61 treated pts (49 male, 12 female, median age 60yrs), median # of prior therapies was 3 (range, 0-8). There were no treatment-related mortalities. One pt on a sorafenib regimen had g3 hand foot syndrome unresponsive to dose reduction. A 2nd pt developed a L-sided visual blurriness after 5 days on a sunitinib regimen; CT showed a small R parieto-occipital hemorrhage, possibly related to therapy. Of 61 treated pts, 7 (11%) had stable disease (SD) > 6 months, 4 (7%) partial response (PR), on protocols combining bevacizumab+sorafenib, pazopanib+everolimus, or single-agent novel oral multikinase inhibitor of VEGFR2-TIE2, or hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) of paclitaxel or oxaliplatin w IV bevacizumab. Median PFS on Phase I trials was 2.2 months vs. 4.4 months and 4.1 months for their 1st- and 2nd-line FDA-approved therapy (p 0.019). In univariate analysis, the presence of ascites, portal hypertension, cirrhosis, serum sodium, albumin, and poor Royal Marsden Hospital (RMH) prognostic score were associated with shorter PFS and OS (p < 0.05). On multivariate analysis, independent factors of shorter OS were Caucasian race (p = 0.031), cirrhosis (p = 0.016), serum sodium (p = 0.0013), and poor RMH prognostic score (p = 0.0015). Molecular analysis in progress will be updated. Conclusions: Phase I therapy offer a reasonable therapeutic option for patients with advanced HCC. The RMH prognostic score was validated in this population. The SD > 6 months/PR rate of 18% was observed with regimen of multikinase inhibitors with mTOR inhibitors and HAI therapy.