Cancer Research and Treatment

Original Article

General

Characteristics of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor–Related Hepatotoxicity Based on the Baseline Liver Function: Won-Jung Jung, Eun-Jung Jo, Ye-Jee Kim, Mihyun Park, Eunji Kim, Yu-Seon Jung, Sook Ryun Park, Ji Seon Oh, So-Hui Kim, Jeongbin Park, Sun-Young Jung, Nakyung Jeon; Cancer Res Treat. 2026;58(3):709-719. Published online July 18, 2025; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2025.040

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Purpose
This study estimated the incidence of immune checkpoint inhibitor–related hepatotoxicity (ICH), identified risk factors, and characterized patients who developed ICH.
Materials and Methods
Adult patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) from January 2015 to June 2022 in a tertiary hospital were included, excluding those without liver function tests or those with liver cancer but normal baseline liver function. Patients were stratified by baseline liver function status; in overall and each of stratified cohorts ICH incidence was calculated as the number of events per 100 person-years with grade 3 hepatotoxicity as the primary outcome. Patient characteristics were assessed using descriptive statistics, and risk factors were identified through multivariable Cox regression. Causality between ICI use and hepatotoxicity was assessed using the Naranjo Algorithm.
Results
Among 803 patients, the ICH incidence was 19.5 cases per 100 person-years, with a higher incidence (47.3 vs. 9.3 cases per 100 person-years) and earlier onset (13 vs. 15 days) in the abnormal compared to the normal group. Significant risk factors for ICH included female sex in the normal group and liver cancer in the abnormal group. According to the Naranjo Algorithm, all the 60 ICH cases were classified as “probable” or “possible”. Among the 60 cases, 61.7% (n=37) resulted in ICI discontinuation. The baseline liver function did not impact on the severity or the likelihood of ICI discontinuation.
Conclusion
Future studies are needed to evaluate whether the impact of ICI discontinuation on survival outcomes in patients with ICH varies based on baseline liver function abnormalities.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Integrative multi-omics profiling identifies infiltrative hepatocellular carcinoma as an immunotherapy-resistant subtype with distinct molecular features
Won Suk Lee, Seonjeong Woo, Sung Hwan Lee, Gae Hoon Jo, Ilhwan Kim, Hyeyeong Kim, Chansik An, Sanghoon Jung, Gwangil Kim, Haeyoun Kang, Beodeul Kang, Jung Sun Kim, Ho Yeong Lim, Incheon Kang, Hannah Yang, So Jung Kong, Dahyeon Son, Dong Jun Shin, Woo Youn
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology.2026; 32(1): 258. CrossRef

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Case Report

Neoadjuvant Imatinib in Locally Advanced Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors of the Stomach: Report of Three Cases: Ji Seon Oh, Jae-Lyun Lee, Mi-Jung Kim, Min-Hee Ryu, Heung Moon Chang, Tae Won Kim, Se Jin Jang, Jeong Hwan Yook, Sung Tae Oh, Byung Sik Kim, Yoon-Koo Kang; Cancer Res Treat. 2006;38(3):178-183. Published online June 30, 2006; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2006.38.3.178

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Neoadjuvant imatinib therapy used to treat locally advanced or metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GI ST) remains under active investigation. We studied three cases of locally advanced gastric GISTs treated with imatinib on a neoadjuvant basis, followed by a complete surgical resection. Three patients were diagnosed with locally advanced unresectable GIST of the stomach and were started on imatinib 400 mg/day. After the imatinib treatment, partial responses were achieved in all patients and the tumors were considered resectable. Surgical resection was done after 7, 11, and 8 months of imatinib therapy, respectively. In one case, a metastatic liver lesion was detected during the imatinib treatment using computed tomography scans, so the imatinib therapy was maintained for 11 months postoperatively. In the other two patients without distant metastasis, imatinib treatment was not restarted after surgery. Mutational analysis revealed a mutation in exon 11 of the c-kit gene in two patients, and wild-type c-kit and PDGFRA in one patient. During pathology review of all three cases, we noted several features common to imatinib treatment. There was no evidence of tumor recurrence in all three patients at respective follow-up visits of 22, 15, and 7 months. These results suggest that the neoadjuvant imatinib therapy is a potentially curative approach for selected patients with locally advanced GIST.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

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Dong-Hoe Koo, Min-Hee Ryu, Kyoung-Mee Kim, Han-Kwang Yang, Akira Sawaki, Seiichi Hirota, Jie Zheng, Bo Zhang, Chin-Yuan Tzen, Chun-Nan Yeh, Toshirou Nishida, Lin Shen, Li-Tzong Chen, Yoon-Koo Kang
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