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Downstaging Protocol Containing Immunotherapy for HCC Beyond the Milan Criteria Before Liver Transplantation

Primary Purpose

Liver Transplantation, Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Status
Recruiting
Phase
Phase 2
Locations
China
Study Type
Interventional
Intervention
Downstaging procedures containing immunotherapy
Liver transplantation
Sponsored by
Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University
About
Eligibility
Locations
Arms
Outcomes
Full info

About this trial

This is an interventional treatment trial for Liver Transplantation focused on measuring Liver transplantation, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Milan Criteria, Downstaging therapy, Locoregional therapies, Targeted therapy, PD1 inhibitor

Eligibility Criteria

18 Years - 75 Years (Adult, Older Adult)All SexesDoes not accept healthy volunteers

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 1. Written informed consent must be obtained prior to any screening procedures, and the patient is willing and able to comply with scheduled visits, treatment plan and laboratory tests.

    2. The diagnosis of HCC is confirmed by at least two types of imaging examination (ultrasound, CT, MRI) with contrast enhanced.

    3. The patient with HCC beyond Milan criteria is scheduled for liver transplantation, and has no extrahepatic metastases, lymph node metastases and main portal vein or hepatic vein invasion.

    4. The Child-Pugh score of the patient is ≤7, and the patient has no encephalopathy, or controllable ascites.

    5. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) scale for assessment of patient Performance Status (PS score) is≤ 2, and KPS score is ≥60.

    6. The patient has not received any systemic treatment within 6 months after the diagnosis of HCC.

    7. Adequate bone marrow, liver and renal function are assessed by central lab by means of the following laboratory requirements: (1)Neutrophils≥1.5*109/L; platelets≥50*109/L; (2)Bilirubin ≤2 times the upper limit of normal; Albumin > 28 g/L; Alanine transaminase (ALT) and aminotransferase (AST) ≤ 5 times the upper limit of normal; (4)Prothrombin time (PT)-international normalized ratio (INR) < 1.5, or PT ≥18 seconds; (5)Serum creatinine ≤ 1.5 times the upper limit of normal, and creatinine clearance ≥ 60ml/min(calculated by Cockcroft-Gault formula).

    8. Both men and women enrolled in this trial must use adequate barrier birth control measures during the course of the trial and 6 months after the completion of trial.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • 1. The patient has suffered from other malignant tumors, except for fully treated non-melanoma skin cancer, cervical carcinoma in situ, and thyroid papillary carcinoma.

    2. The patient has organic disease of heart, lung and brain, uncontrollable mental illness, serious mental illness, alcoholism or drug abuse, uncontrollable systemic infection, including HIV infection、active tuberculosis and etc.

    3. The patient with severe portal hypertension is at higher risk of bleeding as assessed by the investigators.

    4. The patient has any life-threatening event in the past 6 months, including but not limited to acute myocardial infarction, unstable angina pectoris, congestive heart failure, cerebrovascular accident, pulmonary embolism, massive haemorrhage, etc.

    5. The patient has uncontrolled hypertension, or a history of hypertensive crisis or hypertensive encephalopathy.

    6. The patient has severe pulmonary hypertension that cannot be controlled by drugs.

    7. The patient has severe coagulation dysfunction, have bleeding tendency or is receiving thrombolysis, or anticoagulation therapy, or antiplatelet therapy.

    8. The patient has history of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatism, lupus, psoriasis, crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

    9.The patient has received any prior systemic chemotherapy or molecular-targeted therapy or immunotherapy for HCC such as Sorafenib, Lenvatinib, PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor, CAR-T, TCR-T, etc.

    10. The Patient has underwent major surgical procedure, or significant traumatic injury within 4 weeks of the start of protocol treatment.

    11. The patient is known to have a history of severe allergies to any monoclonal antibodies, targeted therapy drugs, or chemotherapeutic agents.

    12. Other factors judged by the investigator may affect the safety of the subjects or the compliance of the trial, such as serious laboratory abnormalities, or other family or social factors.

Sites / Locations

  • Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen UniversityRecruiting

Arms of the Study

Arm 1

Arm Type

Experimental

Arm Label

Downstaging group

Arm Description

Eligible patients (See inclusion and exclusion criteria) will undergo downstaging treatment containing Anti-PD-1 inhibitor (tislelizumab, pembrolizumab, nivolumab et al). Anti-PD-1 inhibitor will be given every 3-4 weeks intravenously. Other combination regimens, such as locoregional therapies and targeted therapies will be given to patients according to the protocol decided by the multidisciplinary team of Centers. Patients that have reached the Criteria for Successful Downstage within 12 cycles of downstaging treatment will proceed to the observation phase, while those who fail to meet the Criteria for Successful Downstage after the maximum length of downstaging procedures will drop out from the study.

Outcomes

Primary Outcome Measures

For patients with liver transplantation: The 2-year event-free survival rate
From the date of transplantation to the date of tumor recurrence or the date of tumor progression otherwise, with censoring at the date of death or last contact for event-free patients.

Secondary Outcome Measures

For patients with liver transplantation: The 2-year overall survival
The time elapsed from the liver transplantation to death during the 2-year follow-up period.
For all patients with HCC downstaging: 1, 2 year overall survival rate
The probability of survival from the beginning of treatment to the end of 1-year and 2-year follow-up.
For patients with liver transplantation: Rate of early allograft dysfunction (EAD)
Number of recipients developing EAD after liver transplantation
For patients with liver transplantation: Rate of allograft rejection
Number of recipients developing allograft rejection after liver transplantation
For all patients with HCC downstaging: Rate of successful tumor downstaging
Number of patients reaching the successful downstaging criteria for liver transplantation

Full Information

First Posted
July 24, 2022
Last Updated
May 24, 2023
Sponsor
Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University
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1. Study Identification

Unique Protocol Identification Number
NCT05475613
Brief Title
Downstaging Protocol Containing Immunotherapy for HCC Beyond the Milan Criteria Before Liver Transplantation
Official Title
A Prospective, Single-arm Study of Downstaging Protocol Containing Immunotherapy for HCC Beyond the Milan Criteria Before Liver Transplantation
Study Type
Interventional

2. Study Status

Record Verification Date
May 2023
Overall Recruitment Status
Recruiting
Study Start Date
August 1, 2023 (Anticipated)
Primary Completion Date
August 1, 2027 (Anticipated)
Study Completion Date
August 1, 2028 (Anticipated)

3. Sponsor/Collaborators

Responsible Party, by Official Title
Sponsor
Name of the Sponsor
Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University

4. Oversight

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product
No
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product
No
Data Monitoring Committee
Yes

5. Study Description

Brief Summary
Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is the most common liver malignancy and the third leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Due to the shortage of donor organs and the risk of tumor recurrence after transplantation, the restrictive Milan criteria is the standard guideline for liver transplantation (LT) in patients with HCC and liver cirrhosis. The XXL study (Mazzaferro et al, 2020) is the first prospective trial validating that effective and sustained downstage therapy could expand the selection criteria and improve the prognosis of recipients with HCC beyond Milan criteria. However, the optimal DT protocol is poorly defined, especially in the Asian population. Recently, immunotherapies such as immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are revolutionizing the management of advanced HCC, the combination of the ICI and other treatment regimens (Anti-VEGF, locoregional therapies et al) produced superior results in patients with advanced-stage HCC compared to those with traditional therapeutic regimens. Therefore, we hypothesize an intensive downstage regimen containing immunotherapy could expand the selection criteria for HCC LT
Detailed Description
This will be a single-arm, open-label, non-randomized phase II study aiming to access the efficacy and safety of the downstage protocol containing immunotherapy for HCC beyond Milan Criteria. This study contains 4 phases: Screening and Downstaging phase Eligible patients (See inclusion and exclusion criteria) will undergo downstaging treatment containing Anti-PD-1 inhibitor (tislelizumab, pembrolizumab, nivolumab et al). Anti-PD-1 inhibitor will be given every 3-4 weeks intravenously. Other combination regimens, such as locoregional therapies and targeted therapies will be given to patients according to the protocol decided by the multidisciplinary team of Centers. Patients that have reached the Criteria for Successful Downstage within 12 cycles of downstaging treatment will proceed to the observation phase, while those who fail to meet the Criteria for Successful Downstage after the maximum length of downstaging procedures will drop out from the study. Criteria for Successful Downstage Patients that meet 1-4 criteria are considered to have achieved the downstaging goal, otherwise, the downstaging treatment is considered to have failed within 12 cycles of downstaging treatment: CR or PR evaluated by iRECIST/mRECIST after at least 2 cycles of downstaging treatment. Patients with onset AFP<400ng/ml: AFP <400ng/ml at the end of downstaging therapy; Patients with onset AFP>400ng/ml: AFP levels decrease more than 30%, and must be less than 1000ng/ml at the end of downstage therapy. Estimated 5-year overall survival ≥60% at the end of downstaging therapy according to the Metroticket model (http://www.hcc-olt-metroticket.org/calculator). For patients with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT1-3), tumor thrombus needs to retract above the bifurcation of the main portal vein, and portal vein anastomosis is feasible during liver transplantation according to the surgeons' judgment. Observation phase Patients that have reached the Criteria for Successful Downstage within 12 cycles of downstaging treatment will proceed to the observation phase ≥ 3 months. Patients at this phase can optionally receive TKIs (sorafenib, lenvatinib et al), and other anti-tumor treatments (such as locoregional therapies, surgery, and immunotherapies et al) are not allowed at this phase. Patients with a sustained response and whose tumors still meet the Criteria for Successful Downstage at the end of the observation phase will be enrolled in the waiting list for liver transplantation, while patients with tumor progression (PD) and their tumors fail to meet the Criteria for Successful Downstage at the end of observation phase will drop out from the study. Waiting and Bridging phase During the waiting period before liver transplantation, patients can optionally receive a non-immunotherapy protocol as bridging treatment determined by the multidisciplinary team (MDT). Surgery is not allowed at this phase. Liver transplantation and post-transplantation phase Patients will undergo liver transplantation unless major medical or oncological contraindications should occur during the waiting phase.

6. Conditions and Keywords

Primary Disease or Condition Being Studied in the Trial, or the Focus of the Study
Liver Transplantation, Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Keywords
Liver transplantation, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Milan Criteria, Downstaging therapy, Locoregional therapies, Targeted therapy, PD1 inhibitor

7. Study Design

Primary Purpose
Treatment
Study Phase
Phase 2
Interventional Study Model
Single Group Assignment
Model Description
Eligible patients will undergo downstaging treatment containing Anti-PD-1 inhibitor (tislelizumab, pembrolizumab, nivolumab et al). Anti-PD-1 inhibitor will be given every 3-4 weeks intravenously. Other combination regimens, such as locoregional therapies and targeted therapies will be given to patients according to the protocol decided by the multidisciplinary team of Centers.
Masking
None (Open Label)
Allocation
N/A
Enrollment
59 (Anticipated)

8. Arms, Groups, and Interventions

Arm Title
Downstaging group
Arm Type
Experimental
Arm Description
Eligible patients (See inclusion and exclusion criteria) will undergo downstaging treatment containing Anti-PD-1 inhibitor (tislelizumab, pembrolizumab, nivolumab et al). Anti-PD-1 inhibitor will be given every 3-4 weeks intravenously. Other combination regimens, such as locoregional therapies and targeted therapies will be given to patients according to the protocol decided by the multidisciplinary team of Centers. Patients that have reached the Criteria for Successful Downstage within 12 cycles of downstaging treatment will proceed to the observation phase, while those who fail to meet the Criteria for Successful Downstage after the maximum length of downstaging procedures will drop out from the study.
Intervention Type
Procedure
Intervention Name(s)
Downstaging procedures containing immunotherapy
Intervention Description
Anti-PD-1 inhibitor will be given every 3-4 weeks intravenously according to the manufacturer's instruction. Other combination regimens, such as locoregional therapies or targeted therapies will be given to patients according to the protocol decided by the multidisciplinary team of Centers.
Intervention Type
Procedure
Intervention Name(s)
Liver transplantation
Intervention Description
Patients with successful downstaging therapy at the end of the observation phase will enroll and undergo liver transplantation unless major medical or oncological contraindications should occur during the waiting phase.
Primary Outcome Measure Information:
Title
For patients with liver transplantation: The 2-year event-free survival rate
Description
From the date of transplantation to the date of tumor recurrence or the date of tumor progression otherwise, with censoring at the date of death or last contact for event-free patients.
Time Frame
2 years
Secondary Outcome Measure Information:
Title
For patients with liver transplantation: The 2-year overall survival
Description
The time elapsed from the liver transplantation to death during the 2-year follow-up period.
Time Frame
2 years
Title
For all patients with HCC downstaging: 1, 2 year overall survival rate
Description
The probability of survival from the beginning of treatment to the end of 1-year and 2-year follow-up.
Time Frame
1, 2 years
Title
For patients with liver transplantation: Rate of early allograft dysfunction (EAD)
Description
Number of recipients developing EAD after liver transplantation
Time Frame
1 week posttransplantation
Title
For patients with liver transplantation: Rate of allograft rejection
Description
Number of recipients developing allograft rejection after liver transplantation
Time Frame
1 year
Title
For all patients with HCC downstaging: Rate of successful tumor downstaging
Description
Number of patients reaching the successful downstaging criteria for liver transplantation
Time Frame
1 year

10. Eligibility

Sex
All
Minimum Age & Unit of Time
18 Years
Maximum Age & Unit of Time
75 Years
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria: Written informed consent must be obtained prior to any screening procedures. Willing and able to comply with scheduled visits, treatment plan and laboratory tests. Patients must have pathologically or cytologically or by radiological criteria proven hepatocellular carcinoma based on the AASLD practice guidelines Patients with HCC must be beyond Milan criteria without extrahepatic metastases or lymph node metastases: 3.1 Patients without previous treatment: Barcelona clinic liver cancer B-C (China liver cancer stage IIb-IIIa) HCC with or without portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT 1-3 according to Japanese Vp classification). 3.2 Patients with late recurrent HCC: The recurrent HCC must be identified no less than 2 years after primary curative treatment (Resection or Radiofrequency, et al), and the recurrent lesions must be localized in the liver and beyond Milan criteria. 3.3 Patients with early recurrent HCC: The recurrent HCC must be identified within 2 years after primary curative treatment (R0 resection or radiofrequency, et al), and the primary tumor must be within Milan criteria, and the accumulating tumor burden(Primary tumor plus recurrent tumor) must be beyond Milan criteria. Child-Pugh score≤7, with no encephalopathy. Ascites that can be controlled by diuretics are permitted in this study. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Scale for Assessment of Patient Performance Status (PS score) ≤ 2; KPS score ≥60. Have not received any immunotherapies 6 months before enrollment. Adequate bone marrow, liver, and renal function. The estimated survival before liver transplantation must be more than 12 weeks (Based on the Model for end-stage liver disease, MELD). No other lethal malignancy outside the liver in recent 5 years, such as leukemia, lung cancer, melanoma, et al. Patients with a history of hypertension should be well-controlled (< 140/90 mmHg) on a regimen of anti-hypertensive therapy. Both men and women enrolled in this trial must use adequate barrier birth control measures during the course of the trial and 6 months after the completion of the trial. Patients voluntarily joined the study and signed informed consent with good compliance and follow-up.
Central Contact Person:
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name or Official Title & Degree
Li PANG, PhD
Phone
+86 13622860325
Email
pangli5@mail.sysu.edu.cn
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name or Official Title & Degree
Leibo Xu, PhD
Phone
+86-18819182396
Email
xuleibo3@mail.sysu.edu.cn
Overall Study Officials:
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name & Degree
Chao LIU, PhD
Organizational Affiliation
Department of Biliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University
Official's Role
Principal Investigator
Facility Information:
Facility Name
Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University
City
Guangzhou
State/Province
Guangdong
ZIP/Postal Code
376032
Country
China
Individual Site Status
Recruiting
Facility Contact:
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name & Degree
Leibo XU, PhD
Phone
+86-20-34070840
Email
xuleibo3@mail.sysu.edu.cn
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name & Degree
Li PANG, PhD
Phone
+86 13622860325
Email
pangli5@mail.sysu.edu.cn

12. IPD Sharing Statement

Plan to Share IPD
No
Citations:
PubMed Identifier
32615109
Citation
Mazzaferro V, Citterio D, Bhoori S, Bongini M, Miceli R, De Carlis L, Colledan M, Salizzoni M, Romagnoli R, Antonelli B, Vivarelli M, Tisone G, Rossi M, Gruttadauria S, Di Sandro S, De Carlis R, Luca MG, De Giorgio M, Mirabella S, Belli L, Fagiuoli S, Martini S, Iavarone M, Svegliati Baroni G, Angelico M, Ginanni Corradini S, Volpes R, Mariani L, Regalia E, Flores M, Droz Dit Busset M, Sposito C. Liver transplantation in hepatocellular carcinoma after tumour downstaging (XXL): a randomised, controlled, phase 2b/3 trial. Lancet Oncol. 2020 Jul;21(7):947-956. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(20)30224-2. Erratum In: Lancet Oncol. 2020 Aug;21(8):e373.
Results Reference
background
PubMed Identifier
32171041
Citation
Schwacha-Eipper B, Minciuna I, Banz V, Dufour JF. Immunotherapy as a Downstaging Therapy for Liver Transplantation. Hepatology. 2020 Oct;72(4):1488-1490. doi: 10.1002/hep.31234. No abstract available.
Results Reference
background
PubMed Identifier
33850328
Citation
Sangro B, Sarobe P, Hervas-Stubbs S, Melero I. Advances in immunotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Aug;18(8):525-543. doi: 10.1038/s41575-021-00438-0. Epub 2021 Apr 13.
Results Reference
background
PubMed Identifier
35765265
Citation
Tran NH, Munoz S, Thompson S, Hallemeier CL, Bruix J. Hepatocellular carcinoma downstaging for liver transplantation in the era of systemic combined therapy with anti-VEGF/TKI and immunotherapy. Hepatology. 2022 Oct;76(4):1203-1218. doi: 10.1002/hep.32613. Epub 2022 Jul 30.
Results Reference
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PubMed Identifier
35181565
Citation
Tan DJH, Lim WH, Yong JN, Ng CH, Muthiah MD, Tan EX, Xiao J, Lim SY, Pin Tang AS, Pan XH, Kabir T, Bonney GK, Sundar R, Syn N, Kim BK, Dan YY, Noureddin M, Loomba R, Huang DQ. UNOS Down-Staging Criteria for Liver Transplantation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 25 Studies. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2023 Jun;21(6):1475-1484. doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2022.02.018. Epub 2022 Feb 16.
Results Reference
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PubMed Identifier
35857294
Citation
Tabrizian P, Holzner ML, Mehta N, Halazun K, Agopian VG, Yao F, Busuttil RW, Roberts J, Emond JC, Samstein B, Brown RS Jr, Najjar M, Chapman WC, Doyle MM, Florman SS, Schwartz ME, Llovet JM. Ten-Year Outcomes of Liver Transplant and Downstaging for Hepatocellular Carcinoma. JAMA Surg. 2022 Sep 1;157(9):779-788. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2022.2800.
Results Reference
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Downstaging Protocol Containing Immunotherapy for HCC Beyond the Milan Criteria Before Liver Transplantation

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