This study will look at whether adding daily oral zinc supplements to targeted therapy plus immunotherapy may help people with unresectable or advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, a common type of liver cancer. About 60 participants will take part in this study. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups. One group will receive targeted therapy plus immunotherapy without extra zinc. The other two groups will receive the same type of cancer treatment together with either 20 mg or 30 mg of elemental zinc each day. The main goal is to compare how many participants have their tumors shrink or disappear by Week 18. Researchers will also look at tumor response at earlier time points, how long the cancer remains under control, overall survival, and treatment safety. Blood tests will be used to measure zinc and copper levels during the study. Researchers will also study changes in immune cells, including T cells, to better understand whether zinc supplementation may affect the body's immune response to cancer treatment. This study is designed to explore whether oral zinc supplementation is safe and may improve the effects of targeted therapy plus immunotherapy. The results may help determine which zinc dose should be studied in larger clinical trials.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
60
Participants will receive oral elemental zinc supplementation at a dose of 20 mg/day. Zinc gluconate tablets will be administered orally, 1 tablet twice daily after meals.
Participants will receive oral elemental zinc supplementation at a dose of 30 mg/day. Zinc gluconate tablets will be administered orally, 1 tablet three times daily after meals.
The background targeted therapy plus immunotherapy regimen will be selected by the investigator based on the participant's clinical condition and standard clinical practice. Permitted regimens include atezolizumab plus bevacizumab and camrelizumab plus apatinib.
The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China (Anhui Provincial Hospital)
Hefei, Anhui, China
RECRUITINGObjective Response Rate (ORR) at Week 18
Proportion of participants achieving complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) at Week 18 according to RECIST v1.1. ORR = (CR + PR) / total number of participants in the analysis set × 100%.
Time frame: At Week 18 after initiation of study treatment
Objective Response Rate (ORR) at Week 9
Proportion of participants achieving complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) at Week 9 according to RECIST v1.1.
Time frame: At Week 9 after initiation of study treatment.
Objective Response Rate (ORR) by mRECIST
Proportion of participants achieving complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) according to mRECIST for hepatocellular carcinoma.
Time frame: At Weeks 9 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Disease Control Rate
Proportion of participants achieving complete response (CR), partial response (PR), or stable disease (SD), assessed according to RECIST v1.1 and mRECIST.
Time frame: At Weeks 9 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Progression-Free Survival
Time from enrollment to the first documented disease progression according to RECIST v1.1 or death from any cause, whichever occurs first.
Time frame: From enrollment until disease progression or death, whichever occurs first.
Overall Survival
Time from enrollment to death from any cause. Participants who are alive will be censored at the date of last known survival.
Time frame: From enrollment until death from any cause.
Change in Serum Zinc Level
Absolute and relative changes in serum zinc levels from baseline.
Time frame: At Weeks 3, 6, 9,12,15 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Incidence of Copper Deficiency
Proportion of participants with serum copper or ceruloplasmin levels below the lower limit of normal during treatment.
Time frame: At Weeks 3, 6, 9,12,15 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Zinc Correction Rate
Proportion of participants with baseline serum zinc \<80 μg/dL who achieve a serum zinc level ≥80 μg/dL at the specified visit.
Time frame: At Weeks 3, 6, 9,12,15 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Change in Peripheral Blood CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T-cell Counts
Change from baseline in the absolute counts of peripheral blood CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T cells, measured by flow cytometry.
Time frame: At Weeks 3, 6, 9,12,15 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Change in Ki-67+ Cells Among Peripheral Blood PD-1+CD8+ T Cells
Change from baseline in the proportion of Ki-67+ cells among peripheral blood PD-1+CD8+ T cells, measured by flow cytometry.
Time frame: At Weeks 3, 6, 9,12,15 and 18 after initiation of study treatment.
Fold Change in Ki-67+ Cells Among Peripheral Blood PD-1+CD8+ T Cells
Fold change from baseline in the proportion of Ki-67+ cells among peripheral blood PD-1+CD8+ T cells at Week 3, measured by flow cytometry. A fold change of 2.8 or greater will be explored as an early immune response threshold.
Time frame: At Week 3 after initiation of study treatment.
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