Glypican-3 as a Prognostic Factor in Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treated by Immunotherapy

Recently, the positive results of the Imbrave 150 study (randomized study comparing Atezolizumab+Bevacizumab versus Sorafenib) prompted investigators to redefine their management strategy for advanced HCC by proposing the combination Atezolizumab+ Bevacizumab as first-line treatment in these patients. Identifying new predictive biomarkers of response is essential to optimize the identification of patients who will benefit from immunotherapy. Glypican-3 (GPC-3) is a cell surface glycoprotein that belongs to the family of heparan sulfate chain proteoglycan that is directly implicated in several cancers and more particularly in HCC. GPC-3 overexpression in serum predicts a poor prognosis for patients with HCC and is associated with early tumor recurrence. Through this study, the investigators want to determine whether the concentration of circulating GPC-3 alone, or in combination with other biomarkers used in current practice (PIVKA, AFP) could predict the response to treatment with Atezolizumab/Bevacizumab and OS.