A review of cutting-edge therapies for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): Perspectives from patents

Abstract

Rationale: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a challenging disease due to its heterogenous etiology. Several breakthroughs have occurred in treatment of HCC, associated with an enormous number of patent publications for a variety of HCC treatment modalities. As patents can provide valuable information for academic research and commercial development, this study aims to unravel the cutting-edge therapies for HCC by using patents as an indicator. The outcome from this analysis may offer meaningful insights for respective policymaking, strategic plan and research and development (R&D) prioritization. Methods: Derwent Innovation platform was employed to collect the sample data of patents related to HCC treatment technologies worldwide as of December 31, 2019. Data inclusion, screening and exclusion were according to the rules of preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA). Technologies were classified based on Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) staging system and recent clinical publications. Patent citation network analysis was carried out to identify and understand HCC therapeutic technology flow. Results: A dataset of 2543 patent documents and 528 patent families was generated. 11 technological categories were classified. Numerous researches were focalized on refinements in technologies and innovations within the field of HCC therapy, and the major achievements are technology advancement on molecular target therapy, chemotherapy, locoregional therapy, combination therapy and immunotherapy with demonstrated clinical benefits. In patent citation network, Notch pathway investigation, antibody drug conjugate (ADC) technology development and drug eluting beads trans artery chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) advancement are the major technological communities involving patents with the greatest future exploratory potential. Conclusion: Numerous emerging technologies have been identified in this study, in which exploring novel therapeutic targets in molecular target therapy, more localized and visible locoregional therapy and combination of immunotherapy with target therapy or other traditional therapies are highlighted as the future trends in treating HCC.

Immune-Related lncRNA Pairs Clinical Prognosis Model Construction for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

“…As an inflammation-related tumor, HCC has an immunosuppressive tumor TME, 34 which can promote immune tolerance through various mechanisms. 35 Since traditional treatment methods for HCC, such as surgical resection, radiofrequency ablation and transcatheter arterial chemoembolization, are effective for localized HCC, 36,37 a variety of systemic drugs targeting TME can be used for unresectable HCC. 38 Recently, Liu et al proposed the combination of molecular targeted therapy and immune checkpoint therapy for HCC, which is a new standard treatment for advanced HCC.…”

HAUS5 is a novel prognostic biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma that is associated with poor clinical outcomes

“…Accompanied by a poor prognosis, HCC patients face a greater fatality risk due to tumor invasion and metastasis since early diagnosis is di cult due to the asymptomatic presentations of early-stage patients [4,5] . At present, treatment of HCC involves targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and radiation, all of which have limited e cacy [6,7] ; therefore, overall survival rates for patients with HCC are still poor. Consequently, the discovery of molecular markers and prognostic indicators for HCC diagnosis and treatment holds considerable signi cance [8,9] .…”

An investigation into the impact of volumetric rescanning and fractionation treatment on dose homogeneity in liver cancer proton therapy

“…Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common form of liver cancer, accounting for approximately 90% of cases [ 6 ]. The primary curative treatment options for HCC are hepatic resection and liver transplantation, with non-surgical options including radiofrequency ablation, embolization, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, chemotherapy, gene therapy, and radiation therapy [ 7 , 8 ]. PBT has been recognized as a method to minimize the mean liver dose (MLD) and the dose received by the uninvolved liver compared to conventional photon therapy.…”