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Bteich F, Desai K, Zhang C, Kaur A, Levy RA, Bioh L, Wang A, Sultana S, Kaubisch A, Kinkhabwala M, Bellemare S, Fidvi S, Kanmaniraja D, Berkenblit R, Moon JY, Adedimeji A, Tow CY, Saenger Y. Immunotherapy Efficacy in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma in a Diverse and Underserved Population in the United States. J Hepatocell Carcinoma 2024; 11:257-269. [PMID: 38333221 PMCID: PMC10849901 DOI: 10.2147/jhc.s436804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Incidence of hepatocellular cancer (HCC) in the Bronx is 61% higher than the rest of New York State. Underserved populations are not well represented in clinical trials of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). Methods Demographics were tabulated for 194 patients treated with ICI at the Montefiore-Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) between 2017 and 2022. Categorical variables were analyzed by Chi-squared test, and survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier (KM) curves. Results MECCC patients were 40.7% Hispanic and 20.6% Black, compared with 3% and 2%, respectively, in the landmark IMbrave 150 study. Median overall survival (mOS) on ICI was 9.0 months, 25.0 months for the 100 (51.5%) favorable-prognosis Child Pugh A (CPA) patients included in HCC clinical trials. Disease control rate (DCR) was 58.5% among 123 evaluable patients per mRECIST 1.1. Baseline liver function, as defined by CP and the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease-Sodium (MELD-Na), correlated with survival (p < 0.001). Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and alcoholism were over-represented relative to National Cancer Institute (NCI) data (56.2% vs 4.7% and 38.7% vs 8.2%, respectively). HCV treatment correlated with prolonged survival in infected patients (p = 0.0017). AFP decline correlated with response (p = 0.001). Hispanic patients lived longer when clinical variables were controlled for (mOS 52 vs 23 months; p = 0.011). Conclusion In an underserved HCC population, ICI yielded a DCR of 58.5% and low rates of severe toxicity. This work highlights ICI efficacy in minority groups, a need for earlier HCC diagnosis and for studies of genetic and environmental factors in Hispanics with HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernand Bteich
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Kush Desai
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Chenxin Zhang
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Anahat Kaur
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, Jacobi Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Rachel A Levy
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Lydia Bioh
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Aaron Wang
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Sharmin Sultana
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | | | - Milan Kinkhabwala
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Department of General Surgery, Division of Abdominal Transplantation, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Sarah Bellemare
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Department of General Surgery, Division of Abdominal Transplantation, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Shabnam Fidvi
- Department of Radiology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | | | - Robert Berkenblit
- Department of Radiology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Jee-Young Moon
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Adebola Adedimeji
- Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Clara Y Tow
- Department of Medicine, Division of Transplant Hepatology, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Yvonne Saenger
- Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Bronx, NY, USA
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Głowska-Ciemny J, Szymański M, Kuszerska A, Malewski Z, von Kaisenberg C, Kocyłowski R. The Role of Alpha-Fetoprotein (AFP) in Contemporary Oncology: The Path from a Diagnostic Biomarker to an Anticancer Drug. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24032539. [PMID: 36768863 PMCID: PMC9917199 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24032539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2022] [Revised: 01/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
This article presents contemporary opinion on the role of alpha-fetoprotein in oncologic diagnostics and treatment. This role stretches far beyond the already known one-that of the biomarker of hepatocellular carcinoma. The turn of the 20th and 21st centuries saw a significant increase in knowledge about the fundamental role of AFP in the neoplastic processes, and in the induction of features of malignance and drug resistance of hepatocellular carcinoma. The impact of AFP on the creation of an immunosuppressive environment for the developing tumor was identified, giving rise to attempts at immunotherapy. The paper presents current and prospective therapies using AFP and its derivatives and the gene therapy options. We directed our attention to both the benefits and risks associated with the use of AFP in oncologic therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Głowska-Ciemny
- PreMediCare New Med Medical Center, ul. Czarna Rola 21, 61-625 Poznań, Poland
- Correspondence: (J.G.-C.); (R.K.)
| | - Marcin Szymański
- PreMediCare New Med Medical Center, ul. Czarna Rola 21, 61-625 Poznań, Poland
| | - Agata Kuszerska
- PreMediCare New Med Medical Center, ul. Czarna Rola 21, 61-625 Poznań, Poland
| | - Zbyszko Malewski
- Department of Perinatology and Gynecology, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-535 Poznań, Poland
| | - Constantin von Kaisenberg
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, D-30625 Hannover, Germany
| | - Rafał Kocyłowski
- PreMediCare New Med Medical Center, ul. Czarna Rola 21, 61-625 Poznań, Poland
- Correspondence: (J.G.-C.); (R.K.)
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