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World J Gastrointest Oncol. Dec 15, 2021; 13(12): 2076-2087
Published online Dec 15, 2021. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v13.i12.2076
Prospect of lenvatinib for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma in the new era of systemic chemotherapy
Takuya Sho, Kenichi Morikawa, Akinori Kubo, Yoshimasa Tokuchi, Takashi Kitagataya, Ren Yamada, Taku Shigesawa, Mugumi Kimura, Masato Nakai, Goki Suda, Mitsuteru Natsuizaka, Koji Ogawa, Naoya Sakamoto
Takuya Sho, Kenichi Morikawa, Akinori Kubo, Yoshimasa Tokuchi, Takashi Kitagataya, Ren Yamada, Taku Shigesawa, Mugumi Kimura, Masato Nakai, Goki Suda, Mitsuteru Natsuizaka, Koji Ogawa, Naoya Sakamoto, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Hokkaido University Faculty of Medicine and Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo 060-8638, Hokkaido, Japan
Author contributions: Sho T and Morikawa K planned the contents of manuscript; the manuscript was drafted by Sho T and Morikawa K and was revised by all authors.
Supported by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), No. JP20fk0210053, JP20fk0310103, JP20fk0210072, JP20fk0210056, JP20fk0310101 and 20fk0210067; JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number No. JP20K08371 and JP19K18956.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Professor Kenichi Morikawa received research grants from Gilead Sciences, Inc., Bristol Myers Squibb, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Professor Goki Suda received research grants from Bristol Myers Squibb and MSD K. K. Professor Naoya Sakamoto received lecture fees from Bristol Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences, Inc., and MSD K. K., collaborative, funded research grants from Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Abbvie G. K., and research grants from Bristol Myers Squibb, MSD K. K., Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Shionogi & Co., Ltd. Takuya Sho, Akinori Kubo, Ren Yamada, Takashi Kitagataya, Taku Shigesawa, Megumi Kimura, Masato Nakai, Goki Suda, Mitsuteru Natsuizaka, and Koji Ogawa declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Kenichi Morikawa, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Hokkaido University Faculty of Medicine and Graduate School of Medicine, Kita 15 Nishi 7, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-8638, Hokkaido, Japan.kenichi.morikawa@med.hokudai.ac.jp
Received: March 29, 2021
Peer-review started: March 29, 2021
First decision: June 16, 2021
Revised: July 8, 2021
Accepted: September 16, 2021
Article in press: September 16, 2021
Published online: December 15, 2021
Core Tip

Core Tip: For about 10 years, first-line systemic chemotherapy for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) had been limited to sorafenib. The Phase III clinical trial of lenvatinib for patients with advanced HCC showed lenvatinib to be non-inferior to sorafenib with respect to overall survival (OS). The OS of patients is still far from satisfactory, and there is a great unmet medical need for more effective therapies. This review focuses on the current understanding of the therapeutic efficacy and safety of lenvatinib in the world and outlines the role of lenvatinib in the new era of chemotherapy for HCC.