Nivolumab in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and Child Pugh B (CPB) cirrhosis: Safety and clinical outcomes in a retrospective case series.

Abstract

496 Background: HCC patients (pts) with Child Pugh B (CPB) cirrhosis have poor prognosis and limited treatment (Tx) options. Nivolumab demonstrated durable responses and acceptable safety in Child Pugh A (CPA) HCC in the CheckMate-040 trial with rates of hepatotoxicity similar to non-HCC populations. The safety and efficacy of nivolumab has not been established in pts with CPB cirrhosis. Methods: Design: Retrospective case series with IRB approval. Key eligibility: HCC with CPB cirrhosis; treated with nivolumab as standard Tx; enrolled in the UCSF Hepatobiliary Tissue Bank and Registry. Study endpoints: Safety during nivolumab Tx including all-cause grade(Gr) ≥ 3 adverse events (AE), serious AE (SAE), any grade immune-related (ir)AE, and systemic steroid (SS) requirement; clinical outcomes including time on Tx (TOT) with nivolumab and overall survival (OS). Results: Thirteen pts were included: male 77%; Asian 38%, white 54%; median age 66 (range: 26-86); HCV Ab+ 31%, HBsAg+ 23%; BCLC B/C 31%/69%; median Child-Pugh score 8; median prior systemic Tx 1 (range: 0-6); prior sorafenib 69%, median duration on prior sorafenib 137 days (range 10-341). The Table depicts safety outcomes on nivolumab. Median TOT on nivolumab: 44 days (95% CI: 32, 98) (range: 17-811+). Median OS from start of nivolumab: 119 days (95% CI: 40, 247) (range: 40-811+). Best response of at least stable disease occurred in 3/13 (23%) of patients, including prolonged stable disease (SD) for 6+ months and complete response (CR) for 24+ months on nivolumab (1 pt each). Conclusions: CPB HCC pts treated with nivolumab experienced high rates of all-cause Gr ≥ 3 AE and SAE and short OS, similar to prior studies in CPB HCC. Rates of irAE attributed to nivolumab were similar to rates reported in CheckMate-040 CPA population, without unexpected AE. A subset of pts experienced prolonged stable disease and CR. Nivolumab warrants further study in CPB HCC.[Table: see text]