Lenvatinib combined with sintilimab plus transarterial chemoembolization as first-line treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND Recently,combination therapy has shown a better trend towards improved tumour response and survival outcomes than monotherapy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).However,research on triple therapy[lenvatinib+sintilimab+transarterial chemoembolization(TACE)]as a first-line treatment for advanced HCC is limited.AIM To evaluate the safety and efficacy of triple therapy as a first-line treatment for advanced HCC.METHODS HCC patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C treated with triple therapy were enrolled.All patients were treated with lenvatinib every day and sintilimab once every 3 wk.Moreover,TACE was performed every 4-6 wk if necessary.The primary outcome of the study was overall survival(OS).The secondary outcomes were the objective response rate(ORR),disease control rate(DCR),and incidence of adverse events.RESULTS Forty HCC patients who underwent triple therapy were retrospectively analysed from January 2019 to January 2022.With a median follow-up of 8.5 months,the 3-,6-,and 12-mo OS rates were 100%,88.5%,and 22.5%,respectively.The ORR and DCR were 45%and 90%,respectively.The median progressive free survival and median OS were not reached.Common complications were observed in 76%of the patients(grade 3,15%;grade 4,2.5%).CONCLUSION Combination therapy comprising lenvatinib,sintilimab and TACE achieved promising outcomes in advanced HCC patients and had manageable effects.

Effect of cetuximab plus FOLFOX4 regimen on clinical outcomes in advanced gastric carcinoma patients receiving evidence-based care

BACKGROUND Although chemotherapy is effective for treating advanced gastric carcinoma(aGC),it may lead to an adverse prognosis.Establishing a highly effective and low-toxicity chemotherapy regimen is necessary for improving efficacy and outcomes in aGC patients.AIM To determine the efficacy and safety of cetuximab(CET)combined with the FOLFOX4 regimen(infusional fluorouracil,folinic acid,and oxaliplatin)as firstline therapy for patients with aGC,who received evidence-based care(EBC).METHODS A total of 117 aGC patients who received EBC from March 2019 to March 2022 were enrolled.Of these,60 in the research group(RG)received CET+FOLFOX4 as first-line therapy,whereas 57 in the control group(CG)received FOLFOX4.The efficacy[clinical response rate(RR)and disease control rate(DCR)],safety(liver and kidney dysfunction,leukopenia,thrombocytopenia,rash,and diarrhea),serum tumor marker expression[STMs;carbohydrate antigen(CA)19-9,CA72-4,and carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)],inflammatory indicators[interleukin(IL)-2 and IL-10],and quality of life(QOL)of the two groups were compared.RESULTS A markedly higher RR and DCR were observed in the RG compared with the CG,with an equivalent safety profile between the two groups.RG exhibited notably reduced CA19-9,CA72-4,CEA,and IL-2 levels following treatment,which were lower than the pre-treatment levels and those in the CG.Post-treatment IL-10 was statistically increased in RG,higher than the pre-treatment level and the CG.Moreover,a significantly improved QOL was evident in the RG.CONCLUSION The CET+FOLFOX4 regimen is highly effective as first-line treatment for aGC patients receiving EBC.It facilitates the suppression of STMs,ameliorates the serum inflammatory microenvironment,and enhances QOL,without increased adverse drug effects.

Returning from the afterlife?Sotorasib treatment for advanced KRAS mutant lung cancer:A case report

BACKGROUND Lung cancer is increasing in incidence worldwide,and targeted therapies are developing at a rapid pace.Furthermore,the KRAS specific gene is strongly associated with non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC).Adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC who have tested positive for the KRAS G12C mutation and have progressed after at least one systemic treatment are treated with sotorasib.CASE SUMMARY In this study,we report on an advanced NSCLC with a KRAS G12C mutation.The histological diagnosis indicates stage IVB left lung adenocarcinoma with pelvic and bone metastases,identified as cT4N2bM1c.Using circulating tumor DNA analysis,it was possible to determine the mutation abundance of the KRAS gene exon 2,c.34G>Tp.G12C,which was 32.3%.The patient was advised to take sotorasib as part of their treatment.The imaging data were compared before and after treatment.Furthermore,clinical reassessments and regular serial blood testing were conducted.We found that the patient’s clinical symptoms significantly improved after receiving sotorasib medication,and there were no notable side effects,such as liver toxicity,during the treatment.CONCLUSION Sotorasib has shown promising clinical efficacy in patients with the KRAS G12c mutation and has no apparent toxic side effects.

Nanomedicine-boosting icaritin-based immunotherapy of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

Traditional treatments for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC),such as surgical resection,transplantation,radiofrequency ablation,and chemotherapy are unsatisfactory,and therefore the exploration of powerful therapeutic strategies is urgently needed.Immunotherapy has emerged as a promising strategy for advanced HCC treatment due to its minimal side effects and long-lasting therapeutic memory effects.Recent studies have demonstrated that icaritin could serve as an immunomodulator for effective immunotherapy of advanced HCC.Encouragingly,in 2022,icaritin soft capsules were approved by the National Medical Products Administration(NMPA)of China for the immunotherapy of advanced HCC.However,the therapeutic efficacy of icaritin in clinical practice is impaired by its poor bioavailability and unfavorable in vivo delivery efficiency.Recently,functionalized drug delivery systems including stimuli-responsive nanocarriers,cell membrane-coated nanocarriers,and living cell-nanocarrier systems have been designed to overcome the shortcomings of drugs,including the low bioavailability and limited delivery efficiency as well as side effects.Taken together,the development of icaritin-based nanomedicines is expected to further improve the immunotherapy of advanced HCC.Herein,we compared the different preparation methods for icaritin,interpreted the HCC immune microenvironment and the mechanisms underlying icaritin for treatment of advanced HCC,and discussed both the design of icaritin-based nanomedicines with high icaritin loading and the latest progress in icaritinbased nanomedicines for advanced HCC immunotherapy.Finally,the prospects to promote further clinical translation of icaritin-based nanomedicines for the immunotherapy of advanced HCC were proposed.

Clinical evidence of neoadjuvant immunotherapy for resectable locally advanced esophageal carcinoma:A systematic review

Background:Immune checkpoint inhibitors(ICIs)as the neoadjuvant therapy for resectable locally advanced esophageal carcinoma(rlaEC)remains challenging given the poor reports of efficacy and safety.This study aimed to summarize reliable evidence for the preoperative neoadjuvant immunotherapy of rlaEc by analyzing all the published clinical trials on the ICIs as the neoadjuvant therapy for rlaEC.Methods:PubMed,Cochrane Library,Embase and ClinicalTrials.gov were searched from inception until June 1st,2023,for available reports to perform a meta-analysis.The primary endpoints were RO resection,objective response rate(ORR),pathological complete response(pCR)and major pathological response(MPR),as well as treatment-related adverse events(AEs)and postoperative complications.The Stata 14.0 software was employed to estimate pooled effect size.Results:A total of 18 single-arm clinical trials involving 625 patients met the inclusion criteria.Meta-analysis showed that,among these patients with rlaEC,the pooled R0 resection rate was 97.0%(95%CI:94.0%-99.0%),the p0oled ORR was 70.0%(95%CI:64.0%-76.0%),the p0oled pCR and MPR rate were 34.0%(95%CI:29.0%-39.0%)and 56.0%(95%CI:47.0%-65.0%)respectively.The incidence of main treatment-related AEs and postoperative complications was about 6%-45% and 8%-19% respectively.Conclusions:Patients with rlaEC were tolerated to neoadjuvant immunotherapy and it might be beneficial to improve efficacy.But this meta-analysis had limitations and the conclusions still needed to be validated by more rigorous phase II randomized controlled clinical trials.

Conversion therapy for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma:Advances and challenges

Recently,the World Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology published an article entitled“Pathologically successful conversion hepatectomy for advanced giant hepatocellular carcinoma after multidisciplinary therapy:A case report and review of the literature”,in which the authors shared their successful experience with complete surgical resection after multidisciplinary conversion therapy.The study by Chu et al demonstrates the great challenges that the advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)poses to surgical oncology,reveals the complexity of conversion therapy for unresectable HCC,emphasizes the important role of a multidisciplinary management model in conversion therapy,and enriches our understanding of the dynamics of personalized treatment for different patients.At present,conversion therapy is a hot research topic in the treatment of unresectable HCC,which has brought new hope to many patients with moderately advanced HCC.However,there are still many urgent problems to be solved in conversion therapy.Here,we would like to further discuss the advances and challenges of conversion therapy for unresectable HCC with the authors and the general readers.

Effect of Shenmai Injection(参麦注射液)on sIL-2R NK and LAK Cells of Patiente with Advanced Carcinoma

Serum interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) level , activities of natural killer cell (NK) and lym-phokine activated killer (LAK) cells were determined in 60 patients with advanced carcinoma (AC) beforeand after treatment with Shenmai Injection (SMI) , forty healthy persons were taken as non-carcinoma control(NC) . The results showed that: Serum slL-2R level in AC were much higher than those in NC (P<0.05) andactivities of NK and LAK cells in AC were much lower than those in NC ( P< 0. 05) before treatment. Therewas no significant difference among gastric, colonic and lung cancer ( P >0. 05) . After treatment with SMI, itwas found that the level of slL-2R in all patients were obviously lowered ( P< 0. 05) while the activities of NKand LAK cells were signifficantly higher than that prior the treatment ( P < 0. 05) . Relevancy was not foundbetween sIL-2R and NK , LAK cells. These data suggested that the immune function was compromised in AC,and SMI has a wide effect of immuno-regulation.

Evolution of systemic therapy of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) commonly occurs in hepatitis B endemic areas, especially in Asian countries. HCC is highly refractory to cytotoxic chemotherapy. This resistance is partly related to its tumor biology, pharmacokinetic properties, and both intrinsic and acquired drug resistance. There is no convincing evidence thus far that systemic chemotherapy improves overall survival in advanced HCC patients. Other systemic approaches, such as hormonal therapy and immunotherapy, have also disappointing results. Recently, encouraging results have been shown in using sorafenib in the treatment of advanced HCC patients. In this review, we concisely summarize the evolution of developments in the systemic therapy of advanced HCC.

Sorafenib in treatment of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma:a systematic review

BACKGROUND: Sorafenib has become the standard first-line treatment for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of sorafenib in advanced HCC patients and explore its true value for specific subgroups. DATA SOURCES: A computer-based systematic search from January 2005 to June 2011 with 'sorafenib' and 'advanced hepatocellular carcinoma' as search terms was performed for possible clinical trials. Hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) for overall survival (OS) and time to progression (TTP), rates of partial response (PR), rates of toxicity effects, and details of subgroup analysis were extracted. Meta-analyses were done using the software Review Manager (version 5.0). RESULTS: Six trials with 1164 patients were included. Based on three randomized controlled trials, the pooled HR (sorafenib/ placebo) was 0.66 for OS (95% CI: 0.56-0.78; P<0.00001) and 0.57 for TTP (95% CI: 0.47-0.68; P<0.00001). The pooled odds ratio (OR) for PR was 2.96 (95% CI: 0.96-9.15; P=0.06). For three single-arm trials, the pooled HR was 0.69 for OS (95% CI: 0.56-0.84; P=0.0002) and 0.64 for TTP (95% CI: 0.52-0.78; P<0.00001). The pooled OR for PR in three single-arm trials was 3.56 (95% CI: 1.22-10.39; P=0.02). Subgroup analysis indicated that sorafenib was less effective in patients with extrahepatic spread (with: P=0.13 vs without: P<0.0001), with normal alpha-fetoprotein level (AFP) (P=0.15 vs elevated: P=0.0006), and with elevated level of serum bilirubin (P=0.06 vs normal: P=0.0009). Sorafenib-based therapy significantly increased the risk of grade 3/4 hand-foot skin reaction, diarrhea, fatigue, and rash/desquamation.CONCLUSIONS: Sorafenib-based therapy benefits advanced HCC patients. Meanwhile, sorafenib is less effective for patients with extrahepatic spread, with normal AFP level and with elevated level of bilirubin.

Decline of serum CA724 as a probable predictive factor for tumor response during chemotherapy of advanced gastric carcinoma

Objective： To evaluate the predictive value of decline in the serum level of carbohydrate antigen 724 （CA724） on tumor response during the chemotherapy in patients with advanced gastric carcinoma （GC）. Methods= The serum CA724 level was determined by electrochemiluminescence immunoassay, while the objective response rate （eRR） was assessed according to response evaluation criteria in solid tumors （RECIST）. The association of the changes of serum concentration of CA724 with eRR was analyzed. Results： The eRR in CA724 （pretreatment serum level） high and low groups was 32.3% （20/62） and 52.8% （19/36）, respectively （P=0.045）. The relationship between the reduction of CA724 and the eRR was statistically significant （P=0.044）. Receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve established the best cutoff value of the decrease ratio of CA724 as 20.5%. Conclusions： CA724 decline seems to indicate chemotherapy efficacy in patients with advanced GC, and an average drop of 20.5% in serum CA724 appears to predict the sensitivity to chemotherapy.

Twenty-four hour intra-arterial infusion of 5-fluorouracil,cisplatin,and leucovorin is more effective than 6-hour infusion for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM. To evaluate the time dependence of intra-arterial 5-fluorouracil （5-FU） therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma （aHCC）. METHODS： Thirty-seven adult Japanese patients who had aHCC and liver cirrhosis were treated with combined intra-arterial 5-FU, cisplatin （CDDP）, and leucovorin （LV）. The Japan Integrated Staging score （JIS score） of each patient was 3 or more. The patients were divided into two groups, alter which the 15 patients in group S were treated with 6-h infusion chemotherapy （LV at 12 mg/h, CDDP at 10 mg/h, and 5-FU at 250 mg/m^2 per 4 h） and the 22 patients in group L were treated with 24-h infusion chemotherapy （LV at 12 mg/h, CDDP at 10 mg/h, and 5-FU at 250 mg/m^2 per 22 h）. Continuous infusion chemotherapy was performed v/a the proper hepatic artery every 5 d for 4 wk using an implanted drug reservoir. RESULTS： The percentages of patients with a partial response after 4 wk of chemotherapy were 6.7% in group S and 31.8% in group L. The survival of group L was significantly better than that of group S, with the median survival time being 496 d in group L and 226 d in group S （P 〈 0.05）. CONCLUSION： Continuous 24-h intra-arterial infusion is more effective for aHCC and can markedly prolong survival time as compared to 6-h infusion.

Efficacy of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM:To investigate the efficacy of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy(HAIC) using floxuridine(FUDR) in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) confined to the liver.METHODS:Thirty-four patients who had advanced HCC with unresectability or unsuccessful previous therapy in the absence of extrahepatic metastasis were treated with intra-arterial FUDR chemotherapy at ourhospital between March 2005 and May 2008.Among the 34 patients,9 patients were classified as Child class C,and 18 patients had portal vein tumor thrombus(PVTT).One course of chemotherapy consisted of continuous infusion of FUDR(0.3 mg/kg during day 1-14) and dexamethasone(10 mg on day 1,4,7 and 11),and this treatment was repeated every 28 d.RESULTS:Two patients(5.9%) displayed a complete response,and 12 patients(35.3%) had a partial response.The tumor control rate was 61.8%.The median overall survival times were 15.3 mo,12.4 mo and 4.3 mo for the patients who were classified as Child class A,Child class B and Child class C,respectively(P = 0.0392).The progression-free survival was 12.9 mo,7.7 mo and 2.6 mo for the patients who were classified as Child class A,Child class B and Child class C,respectively(P = 0.0443).The cumulative survival differed significantly according to the Child-Pugh classification and the presence of PVTT.In addition to hepatic reserve capacity and PVTT,the extent of HCC was an independent factor in determining a poor prognosis.The most common adverse reactions to HAIC were mucositis,diarrhea and peptic ulcer disease,but most of these complications were improved by medical treatment and/or a delay of HAIC.CONCLUSION:The present study demonstrates that intra-arterial FUDR chemotherapy is a safe and effective treatment for advanced HCC that is recalcitrant to other therapeutic modalities,even in patients with advanced cirrhosis.

Chemotherapy with enteric-coated tegafur/uracil for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, including Japan. Although the development of imaging modalities has made the early diagnosis of HCC possible, surgically resectable cases are relatively uncommon because of hepatic function reserve and/or an advanced stage at presentation. Several modalities, such as transcatheter arterial chemoembolization, percutaneous ethanol injection, microwave coagulation therapy and radiofrequency ablation are reportedly useful in treating patients with non-resectable disease. However, unfortunately, many HCC patients have tumor recurrence. The overall prognosis of patients with HCC is very poor, and treatment of the advanced form is still problematic. In this article, we review the clinical efficacy and toxicity of enteric-coated tegafur/uracil in the treatment of patients with advanced non-resectable HCC.

Gemcitabine and oxaliplatin combination chemotherapy in 30 patients with advanced pancreatic carcinoma

Objective: To evaluate the activity and safety of combination chemotherapy with gemcitabine plus oxaliplatin (GEMOX regimen) in patients of advanced pancreatic carcinoma. Methods: 30 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer were enrolled into this study. All patients received gemcitabine 1000 mg/m2, given by 30-minute intravenous infusion, on days 1 and 8 of each 21-day cycle. Oxaliplatin 100 mg/m2 was administered as a 2 h infusion on day 1 of each 21 day. Clinical outcomes for patients treated with two cycles of chemotherapy were evaluated according to WHO criteria. Results: All 30 patients were eligible for effectiveness and safety analysis. Objective response rate was approximately 20.0%. Clinical benefit response (CBR) was a composite of assessment of pain, performance status and body weight. The pain relief rate, improve-ment rate of performance status and body weight were 53.3%, 46.7% and 36.7%, respectively. The main adverse effects were bone marrow depression, peripheral nerve toxicity and gastrointestinal reaction. There was no treatment-related death during the chemotherapy. Conclusion: The high response rate with low toxicity observed in this study suggests that GEMOX regimen may be an effective alternative curative treatment for patients with advanced pancreatic carcinoma and can be used more extensively in clinical practice.

Pembrolizumab-induced Stevens-Johnson syndrome in advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the lung:A case report and review of literature

BACKGROUND For advanced lung squamous cell carcinoma,immune checkpoint inhibitors(ICIs)have been regarded as one of the optimal therapies.While immune-related adverse events(ir AEs)are common in ICI treatment,cutaneous toxicities are among the most common ir AEs.Most immune-related skin toxicity grades are low,and the prognosis is good.However,Stevens-Johnson syndrome(SJS)is a rare but extremely severe cutaneous adverse drug reaction with high mortality.CASE SUMMARY We report a rare case of SJS induced by pembrolizumab.The case involved a 68-year-old female who was diagnosed with advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the lung.SJS appeared after one cycle of immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy.After treatment with prednisone hormone symptoms,antiinfection,gamma globulin,and antipruritic agents,the skin toxicity of the patients gradually decreased and eventually disappeared.Although the antitumor treatment was stopped due to serious adverse reactions,the tumor of the patient remained stable for nearly half a year after one cycle of immune therapy combined with chemotherapy,which also corroborates the delayed effect of immunotherapy.CONCLUSION We believe our report can provide some references for the treatment of SJS and the treatment of immune-related adverse reactions.

Clinical study of FOLFOX4 regimen for patients of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

Objective:The aim of our study was to observe the efficiency and toxicity of oxaliplatin (L-OHP) combined with CF/5-FU in patients with advanced primary hepatocellular carcinoma.Methods:Twenty patients with advanced primary hepatocellular carcinoma had recurrence/metastasis after multiple courses of TACE (cisplatin and epirubicin,etc.).All patients were treated with FOLFOX4 regimen of the combination of oxaliplatin and leucovorin and 5-fluorouracil.Treatment was repeated every 2 weeks until disease progression or unacceptable adverse effects occurred.The efficiency was evaluated according to RECIST criteria,and toxicities according to American National Cancer Institute Common Toxicity Criteria (NCI CTC),respectively.Results:Twenty patients were assessable for the objective efficiency and for toxicity.No patient achieved complete response (CR),4 patients were partial response (PR),8 patients were stable disease (SD),8 patients were disease progression (PD);Time to tumor progression (TTP) of the patients ranged from 1.5 to 4.8 months,median TTP was 2.2 months;Overall survival (OS) of the patients ranged from 3 to 10.2 months,median OS was 5 months.The 2 patients' serum AFP level decreasing.Sixteen patients relieved the symptoms obviously,stabilized or raised up Karnofsky Score.The toxicities were mainly grade I-II arrest of bone marrow (50%),mild neurotoxicity (30%) and mild reaction of gastrointestinal tract (40%).Conclusion:FOLFOX4 regimen is effective and safe for patients with advanced primary hepatocellular carcinoma.It can be worthy of further clinical investigation.

The clinical research of elemene emulsion combined with FOLFOX4 regimen in the treatment of advanced gastric carcinoma

Objective:The aim of this study was to observe the effects and adverse reactions of elemene emulsion added to the chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced gastric carcinoma (AGC).Methods:Forty-nine patients were divided randomly into two groups,elemene emulsion group (25 cases,treated with chemotherapy and elemene emulsion) and chemotherapy group (24 cases,treated with chemotherapy only).All patients received chemotherapy.The clinical effects and adverse reactions were evaluated after four cycles.Results:The response rate (RR) were 60% in elemene emulsion group and 41.7% in chemotherapy group respectively (P < 0.05).The median time to progression and overall survival in elemene emulsion group and in chemotherapy group were 7.1 months and 11.0 months vs 5.2 months and 9.3 months (P < 0.05).A lower rate of neutropenia,nausea,vomiting and diarrhea occurred in elemene emulsion group compared with chemotherapy group (P < 0.05),and there was significant difference in the elevation of life quality as well (48% vs 25%;P < 0.05).Conclusion:Elemene emulsion in combination with FOLFOX4 regimen can improve the efficacy,decrease the incidence of side effects of chemotherapy and elevate the life quality and prolong the survival time in AGC.

Combination of TACE and FOLFOX4 in the treatment of unresectable advanced hepatocellular carcinoma:a prospective cohort study

Objective The aim of the study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of a combined therapy with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE)and FOLFOX4,in patients with unresectable advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).Methods In this study,patients with advanced HCC,that received treatment between November 2015 and October 2017,were recruited.Among these,30 patients were treated with TACE only(TACE group);whereas 33 patients were treated with a combination of FOLFOX4 chemotherapy and TACE(combination group).Survival analyses,including overall survival(OS)and progression free survival(PFS)analysis,were performed for both groups.Following this,the responses of patients to treatment were evaluated every 3 months,and the toxic and adverse events were observed.Results The median follow-up time was 9.2 months(3-36 months).In the combination group,at 3 months,a disease control rate(DCR)of 60.6%,and a median OS of 9.1 months was obtained[95%confidence interval(CI)6.5-11.7].In the TACE group,the DCR and OS were 33.3%and 5.5 months(95%CI 4.3-6.7),respectively.On the other hand,the PFS in the combination and TACE groups were observed as 5.6 months(95%CI 3.6-7.6)and 2.6 months(95%CI 2.0-3.2),respectively.Both these findings indicate a statistically significant difference(P=0.01)between both the groups.Similar TACE associated adverse events were observed in both groups.In the combination group,frequently observed FOLFOX4 related adverse effects included nausea(90.9%),leukopenia(75.8%),thrombocytopenia(69.7%),and vomiting(69.7%).Most adverse reactions were between grades I-III and were alleviated after symptomatic treatments.Conclusion The combination of TACE with FOLFOX4 therapy has better effectivity and safety than TACE alone.

Oncolytic virus-based hepatocellular carcinoma treatment:Current status,intravenous delivery strategies,and emerging combination therapeutic solutions

Current treatments for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)have limited success in improving patients’quality of life and prolonging life expectancy.The clinical need for more efficient and safe therapies has contributed to the exploration of emerging strategies.Recently,there has been increased interest in oncolytic viruses(OVs)as a therapeutic modality for HCC.OVs undergo selective replication in cancerous tissues and kill tumor cells.Strikingly,pexastimogene devacirepvec(Pexa-Vec)was granted an orphan drug status in HCC by the U.S.Food and Drug Administration(FDA)in 2013.Meanwhile,dozens of OVs are being tested in HCC-directed clinical and preclinical trials.In this review,the pathogenesis and current therapies of HCC are outlined.Next,we summarize multiple OVs as single therapeutic agents for the treatment of HCC,which have demonstrated certain efficacy and lowtoxicity.Emerging carrier cell-,bioengineered cell mimetic-or nonbiological vehicle-mediated OV intravenous delivery systems in HCC therapy are described.In addition,we highlight the combination treatments between oncolytic virotherapy and other modalities.Finally,the clinical challenges and prospects of OV-based biotherapy are discussed,with the aim of continuing to develop a fascinating approach in HCC patients.

Clinical analysis of PF plus concurrent radiotherapy in locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Objective： The prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma （NPC） depends on the stage of the disease at diagnosis. Unfortunately, at diagnosis, most of patients have locally advanced, non-metastatic stage III or IVa disease. The study was to evaluate the efficacy and toxicities of cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil combined with concurrent radiotherapy for locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods： Sixty-six patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma received chemotherapy of cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil jointing concurrent radiotherapy; concurrent radiotherapy started on day 1 in the first cycle of chemotherapy of PF, 5-fluorouraci1500 mg/m^2 intravenous infusion on days 1-5, cisplatin 80 mg/m2 intravenous infusion on days 1-3, 21 days for a cycle, a total of three cycles; nasopharyngeal lesions and positive lymph node were given a total amount of 70 Gy, prophylactic neck radiation were given the amount of 50 Gy, radiotherapy five times a week, Gy/f. Results： All patients who can be evaluated, the response rate （RR） was 100%; 1-, 3- and 5-year overall survival （OS） were 100%, 86.4%, 21.2%, respectively; 3-year, 5-year disease-free survival （DFS） were 72.7% and 18.2%, respective- ly; the average survival time and median survival time were 49.0 months and 48.5 months, respectively; the average survival time and median survival time of DFS were 46.1 months and 46.5 months, respectively. Conclusion： For patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, who accepted RT combining concurrent chemotherapy of cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil, clinical efficacy is satisfaction and toxicities could be tolerated.