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Impact of body mass index in patients receiving atezolizumab plus bevacizumab for hepatocellular carcinoma

  • Mathew Vithayathil
  • , Antonio D’Alessio
  • , Claudia Angela Maria Fulgenzi
  • , Naoshi Nishida
  • , Martin Schönlein
  • , Johann von Felden
  • , Kornelius Schulze
  • , Henning Wege
  • , Anwaar Saeed
  • , Brooke Wietharn
  • , Hannah Hildebrand
  • , Linda Wu
  • , Celina Ang
  • , Thomas U. Marron
  • , Arndt Weinmann
  • , Peter R. Galle
  • , Dominik Bettinger
  • , Bertram Bengsch
  • , Arndt Vogel
  • , Lorenz Balcar
  • Bernhard Scheiner, Pei Chang Lee, Yi Hsiang Huang, Suneetha Amara, Mahvish Muzaffar, Abdul Rafeh Naqash, Antonella Cammarota, Valentina Zanuso, Tiziana Pressiani, Matthias Pinter, Alessio Cortellini, Masatoshi Kudo, Lorenza Rimassa, David J. Pinato, Rohini Sharma

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: Atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (Atezo/Bev) is first line-treatment for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Body mass index (BMI) has demonstrated predictive value for response to immunotherapy in non-HCC cancer types. Our study investigated the effect of BMI on safety and efficacy of real-life use of Atezo/Bev for unresectable HCC. Methods: 191 consecutive patients from seven centres receiving Atezo/Bev were included in the retrospective study. Overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), overall response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR) defined by RECIST v1.1 were measured in overweight (BMI ≥ 25) and non-overweight (BMI < 25) patients. Treatment-related adverse events (trAEs) were evaluated. Results: Patients in the overweight cohort (n = 94) had higher rates of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and lower rates of Hepatitis B compared to non-overweight cohort (n = 97). Baseline Child–Pugh class and Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage were similar between cohorts, with lower rates of extrahepatic spread in the overweight group. Overweight patients had similar OS compared to non-overweight (median OS 15.1 vs. 14.9 months; p = 0.99). BMI did not influence median PFS (7.1 vs. 6.1 months; p = 0.42), ORR (27.2% vs. 22.0%; p = 0.44) and DCR (74.1% vs. 71.9%; p = 0.46). There were higher rates of atezolizumab-related fatigue (22.3% vs. 10.3%; p = 0.02) and bevacizumab-related thrombosis (8.5% vs. 2.1%; p = 0.045) in the overweight patients, but overall trAEs and treatment discontinuation were comparable between cohorts. Conclusion: Atezo/Bev has comparable efficacy in overweight HCC patients, with an increase in treatment-related fatigue and thrombosis. Combination therapy is safe and efficacious to use in overweight patients, including those with underlying NAFLD.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)904-914
Number of pages11
JournalHepatology International
Volume17
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2023

Keywords

  • Anti-programmed death-ligand
  • Anti-vascular endothelial growth factor
  • Checkpoint inhibitor
  • Cirrhosis
  • Immunotherapy
  • Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
  • Obesity
  • Overall survival
  • Overweight
  • Progression-free survival

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