Safety and Tolerability of Neoadjuvant Sunitinib in HCC

Thomas Marron, PhD, MD, assistant director of early phase and immunotherapy clinical trials at the Tisch Cancer Institute and assistant professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai discusses the safety and tolerability of neoadjuvant sunitinib (Sutent) inhepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

According to Marron, of the 21 patients who received sunitinib prior to surgery with curative intent, all 21 made it to the operating room (OR). Of those 21 patients, 20 made it with no issue and 1 developed pneumonitis. Overall, it was a well-tolerated treatment.

There has to be balance between efficacy and tolerability, according to Marron. The sunitinib regimen was a relatively short, easy treatment that did not significantly delay the patient’s curative intent therapy.

The findings suggest that in the future, single-cell sequencing will allow investigators to look at T cells, especially the ones that are tumor specific, according to Marron. These cells may not only help inform further iterations of neoadjuvant trials but also future combination therapies.