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BACKGROUND Starting a second-line systemic treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common situation. The only therapeutic options in France are two broad-spectrum tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), regorafenib (REG) and cabozantinib (CBZ), but no comparative real-life studies are available. AIM To evaluate the progression-free survival (PFS) of patients treated with REG or CBZ, we investigated the disease control rate (DCR), overall survival (OS), and safety of both drugs. To identify the variables associated with disease progression over time. METHODS A retrospective multicenter study was performed on the clinical data of patients attending one of three referral centers (Avignon, Marseille, and Nice) between January 2017 and March 2021 using propensity score matching. PFS and OS were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Multivariate analysis (MA) of progression risk factors over time was performed in matched-pair groups. RESULTS Fifty-eight patients 68 (62-74) years old with HCC, Barcelona clinic liver cancer (BCLC) B/C (86%), Child-Pugh (CP)-A/B (24%) received REG for 3.4 (1.4-10.5) mo as second-line therapy. Twenty-eight patients 68 (60-73) years, BCLC B/C (75%), CP-A/B (25%) received CBZ for 3.7 (1.8-4.9) mo after first-line treatment with sorafenib [3 (2-4) (CBZ) vs 4 (2.9-11.8) mo (REG), P = 0.0226]. Twenty percent of patients received third-line therapy. After matching, PFS and DCR were not significantly different after a median follow-up of 6.2 (2.7-11.7) mo (REG) vs 5.2 (4-7.2) mo (CBZ), P = 0.6925. There was no difference in grade 3/4 toxicities, dose reductions, or interruptions. The OS of CP-A patients was 8.3 (5.2-24.8) vs 4.9 (1.6-11.7) mo (CP-B), P = 0.0468. The MA of risk factors for progression over time identified C-reactive protein (CRP) > 10 mg/L, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) > 3, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) > 45 IU as predictive factors. CONCLUSION This multicenter indirect comparative study found no significant difference in PFS between REG and CBZ as second-line therapy for advanced HCC. Elevated levels of inflammatory markers (CRP and NLR) and AST were associated with non-control of TKIs over time. A 2-mo online progression risk calculation is proposed.

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6003 Background: For pts with R/M SCCHN, new standard of care (SoC) has been recently established with pembrolizumab either alone or combined with platin-5FU (KN 048 – median Overall Survival (OS): 13 months when combined). For pts who need chemotherapy, platinum-5FU-pembrolizumab as first-line treatment appears associated with substantial toxicity that precludes its use in fragile patients. In this context, we investigated the efficacy and tolerance of PDL-1 inhibition with durvalumab combined with weekly carboplatin-paclitaxel as first-line treatment in frail R/M SCCHN pts. Methods: This single-arm phase II study enrolled pts in first-line of their R/M SCCHN and not eligible to standard cisplatin-based CT with an ECOG PS of 0 or 1. Pts received 4 cycles of CT (carboplatin AUC2; paclitaxel 80mg/m² both at D1, D8, D15) and durvalumab (D) 1500mg repeated every 4 weeks for a maximum of 12 months. The primary endpoint was OS Rate at 12 months (m). The study used a Fleming A’Hern design (inefficacy boundary: 47% and target efficacy: 65%), requiring 38 successes among 64 pts. Secondary endpoints were Progression-Free Survival (PFS), Time to Treatment Failure (TTF), objective response rate (ORR) and tolerance. Results: 64 pts (median age 69.5y; 90.6% males, 62.5% PS1) were included, regardless of their PDL-L1 status. Primary tumors were mainly located in oropharynx (37.5%) and larynx (28.1%) with 37.3% PD-L1 CPS≥20. 54.9% were metastatic. The efficacy rule for OS was met with 40 pts (62.5%, unilateral 95%CI: [51.5% - ]) alive at 12m. With a median follow-up of 27.1 m, median OS was 18.0 m (95% CI [11.9-NR]) and the 24m-OS rate was 45% [32%-57%]. Median PFS was 7.0 m (95% CI [5.4-9.9]) and median TTF was 6.0 m (95% CI [4.7-9]). 44/62 pts (71%) achieved an OR (11.3% complete response and 59.7% partial response). Median duration of response was 5.9 m (95% CI [3.4-9.6]). 20.3% of pts experienced G≥3 adverse events related to D, Toxicity led to permanent discontinuation of D in 3.1% of pts. No D-related death was reported. Conclusions: This study performed in fragile patients not amenable to cisplatin-based CT met its primary endpoint on OS and showed a 18 months median OS rate. This combination of durvalumab with weekly carboplatin/paclitaxel was associated with a favorable toxicity profile. Clinical trial information: NCT0372967 .