Prognostic value of Glasgow prognostic score in patients with advanced hepatitis-B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma undergoing hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy combined with lenvatinib and toripalimab.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) in predicting prognosis in patients with advanced hepatitis-B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HBV-HCC) who are undergoing hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) combined with lenvatinib and toripalimab therapy.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

In this single-center retrospective study, patients with advanced HBV-HCC who received treatment with HAIC combined with lenvatinib and toripalimab from March 2019 to November 2021 were analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups based on GPS, and propensity score matching (PSM) was used to assess progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in both groups.

RESULTS

Of the 58 patients, 37 were included in the study. Thirteen patients were in the GPS score 0 group and 24 in the GPS score 1 group. After PSM, eight pairs were selected. Patients in the GPS score 0 group had significantly longer median PFS before (10.2 versus 4.3 months, P = 0.009) and after PSM (5.6 versus 1.9 months, P = 0.026). Similarly, OS was significantly longer in the GPS score 0 group before (32.0 versus 9.7 months, P < 0.001) and after PSM (32.0 versus 8.6 months, P < 0.001). GPS was an independent prognostic factor for OS, with borderline significance for PFS. In addition, tumor number was identified as an independent prognostic factor for PFS.

CONCLUSION

This exploratory study provides preliminary evidence that GPS may serve as a prognostic factor for patients with advanced HBV-related HCC who were receiving a triple-combination therapy, requiring further validation in larger cohorts.