Hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy plus camrelizumab and apatinib for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

There is limited information on combination of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) and systemic therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (Ad-HCC). We aim to compare the efficacy and safety of HAIC plus camrelizumab (a PD-1 inhibitor) and apatinib (an VEGFR-2 inhibitor) versus camrelizumab and apatinib for Ad-HCC.

From April 2019 to October 2022, 416 patients with Ad-HCC who received either HAIC plus camrelizumab and apatinib (TRIPLET protocol, n = 207) or camrelizumab and apatinib (C–A protocol, n = 209) were reviewed retrospectively. The propensity score matching (PSM) was used to reduce selective bias. Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were compared using the Kaplan–Meier method with the log-rank test. Cox regression analyses of independent prognostic factors were evaluated.

After PSM 1:1, 109 patients were assigned to two groups. The median OS of not reached in the TRIPLET group was significantly longer than that of 19.9 months in the C–A group (p < 0.001), while in the TRIPLET group, the median PFS of 11.5 months was significantly longer than that of 9.6 months in the C–A group (p < 0.001). Multivariate analyses showed that the factors significantly affected the OS were CTP grade, tumor number > 3, and TRIPLET treatment (p < 0.001). Grade 3/4 adverse events occurred at a rate of 82.1% vs. 71.3% in TRIPLET and C–A groups, respectively.

The TRIPLET protocol has promising survival benefits in the management of patients with Ad-HCC, with acceptable safety.

Trail registration: The study has been retrospectively registered at Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (https://www.chictr.org.cn/, ChiCTR2300075828).