Rationale and objective: The goal of this study was to determine the clinical efficacy and safety of drug-eluting bead (DEB) transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in combination with apatinib administration in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Materials and methods: From December 2015 to May 2017, a total of 32 patients with advanced HCC treated with DEB-TACE combined with apatinib were consecutively enrolled in this study. The treatment response and laboratory outcomes were assessed at the first- and third month after DEB-TACE therapy. Overall survival, progression-free survival, and adverse events were also analyzed and assessed.
Results: The objective response rate and disease control rate were 62.5% and 96.9% at the first month after treatment, respectively. At the third month after the first therapy, a slightly higher objective response rate (68.8%) and lower disease control rate (90.6%) were achieved. There were no differences in the levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, serum albumin, or total bilirubin at M1 or M3 compared to M0 (all p> 0.05) The median progression-free survival was 9.5 months (95% confidence interval, 8.1-10.9 months), and the median overall survival was 22.0 months (95% confidence interval, 20.2-23.9 months). Among the 32 patients, 2 had hypertension and 1 had grade 3 diarrhea; the rest of the patients had mild to moderate adverse reactions that were acceptable, and no serious adverse reactions occurred.
Conclusion: DEB-TACE combined with apatinib is a safe and promising treatment approach for patients with advanced HCC.
Keywords: Apatinib; DEB-TACE; Hepatocellular carcinoma.
Copyright © 2019 The Association of University Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.