Huaier granules for hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence after ablation: A multicenter prospective cohort study.

Abstract

e16216 Background: Clinical trials had confirmed the efficacy and safety of Huaier granules in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but real-world evidence is still lacking. This prospective study aimed to evaluate the real-world effectiveness and safety of Huaier granules for HCC recurrence after ablation. Methods: Post-ablation patients with no residual lesions confirmed by imaging were enrolled in this study and divided into the Huaier granule group and the control group based on receiving Huaier granules or not. Propensity-score matching was performed according to age, gender, TACE within 3 months before ablation, alpha-fetoprotein level, time interval between ablation and enrollment, and Child-Pugh Grade in 1-(up)-to-2 ratio. The primary outcome was progression-free survival (PFS), and the secondary outcomes were local recurrence-free survival (LRFS) and adverse events (AEs). Results: There were 340 patients in the Huaier granule group and 141 patients in the control group. After propensity score matching, 189 patients and 111 patients were selected for the Huaier granule group and the control group, respectively. There was no significant difference in baseline characteristics between two groups after matching. The median follow-up time of the Huaier granule group and the control group were 49.14 weeks and 73.29 weeks, respectively. The number of PFS events were 29 (15.34%) and 27 (24.32%) in the Huaier granule group and the control group, respectively. The 48, 72, and 96-week PFS rates were 87.4%, 79.4% and 75.2% in the Huaier granule group, and 79.9%, 70.1% and 66.5% in the control group, respectively ( P=0.1649). The number of LRFS events were 27 and 25 in the Huaier granule group and the control group, respectively. In the pre-matching Huaier granule cohort, the incidence of AEs, serious AEs, and grade ≥ 3 AEs were 54 (16.56%), 30 (9.20%) and 14 (4.30%), respectively. Conclusions: This study suggested potential benefit in PFS and RFS and favorable safety profile of Huaier granules in patients with HCC after ablation. Longer-term follow-up is needed to confirm this finding.[Table: see text]