Safety and efficacy of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: A multicenter analysis

Aim The safety and efficacy of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (Atez/Bev) in elderly patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have not been sufficiently investigated. Methods A total of 317 patients with HCC treated with Atez/Bev were studied. We compared the survival and frequency of adverse events in elderly versus non-elderly patients with HCC who were treated with Atez/Bev using an analysis of inverse probability weighting (IPW). Results Univariate analysis adjusted with IPW showed that being elderly is not associated with worse overall or progression-free survival (hazard ratio [HR], 1.239; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.640-2.399; p = 0.526 and HR, 1.256; 95% CI, 0.871-1.811; p = 0.223, respectively). Regarding treatment-related adverse events, any grade of fatigue, proteinuria, decreased appetite, hypertension, and liver injury occurred in >= 10% of patients. There were no significant differences in treatment-related adverse events between the elderly and non-elderly groups. In a subgroup analysis of elderly patients aged 75-79, 80-84, or >= 85 years, there were no significant differences in cumulative overall or progression-free survival among these age groups (p = 0.960 and 0.566, respectively). In addition, there were no significant differences in treatment-related adverse events among these three age groups, except for proteinuria of any grade. In a subgroup analysis of patients treated with Atez/Bev as first-line systemic therapy, there were no significant differences in cumulative overall or progression-free survival between the elderly and non-elderly groups (p = 0.728 and 0.805, respectively). Conclusions Atez/Bev can be used efficaciously and safely in spite of age in patients with unresectable HCC.