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Updated: Aug 24, 2025
A Mouse Model of Incompletely Resected Soft Tissue Sarcoma for Testing Neoadjuvant Therapies
Published on: July 28, 2020
Efficacy and safety of apatinib in advanced refractory soft tissue sarcoma and association with histologic subtypes:
Xiangling Wang1, Jian Wang1, Baoyong Sun2
1Department of Medical Oncology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Background:
Antiangiogenic therapy is a potential strategy against advanced refractory soft tissue sarcoma (STS). This retrospective study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of apatinib in patients with advanced refractory STS and explore its clinical effect on the different histologic subtypes.
Methods:
Patients with pathologically diagnosed and metastatic STS who had failed at least standard chemotherapy and were naive to angiogenesis inhibitors were enrolled in this multicenter respective study. Apatinib was administered orally at a dosage of 250 to 850 mg/day. The primary endpoints were objective response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR). The secondary endpoints were progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Tumor assessment was done after the first 4 weeks and every 8 weeks thereafter.
Results:
Twenty-six patients were enrolled from seven centers between December 2015 and December 2020, consisting of 9 leiomyosarcomas (LMS), 4 rhabdomyosarcomas (RMS), 3 undifferentiated pleomorphic cell sarcomas (UPS), 3 fibrosarcomas (FS), 3 alveolar soft part sarcomas (ASPS), 2 angiosarcomas (AS) and 2 synovial sarcomas (SS). The median age was 49.0 [26-77] years, 15 females and 11 males. The ORR was 34.62% [9/26, 95% confidence interval (CI): 19.42-53.78%] and DCR was as high as 84.62% (22/26, 95% CI: 66.47-93.85%). The median progression-free survival and overall survival were 6.0 months (95% CI: 2.42-9.58) and 19.3 months (95% CI: 7.31-31.29) respectively. Furthermore, 181 patients from seven studies as well as this trial were included for pooled analysis of apatinib efficacy dependency on histology. In terms of ORR, RMS (41.7%), ASPS (78.6%), and Ewing sarcoma (40.7%) seemed to benefit more than the other histologic subtypes. Common adverse events (AEs) included hand-foot skin reaction (n=13, 50.0%), hypertension (n=12, 46.15%), proteinuria (n=10, 38.46%). Seven patients (7/26, 26.92%) had grade 3 AEs and no grade 4 AEs occurred. 2 patients (2/26, 7.69%) and 15 patients (15/26, 57.69%) experienced dose withdrawal and dose reduction respectively.
Conclusions:
Apatinib showed promising efficacy and a manageable safety profile in patients with advanced refractory STS. In addition, the response to apatinib in STS seemed to be dependent on histology.
Insights
Apatinib demonstrated significant efficacy in treating advanced refractory soft tissue sarcoma (STS), with an objective response rate of 34.62%. The drug
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Medical Pharmacology
- Clinical Trials
Background:
- Soft tissue sarcoma (STS) is a group of rare cancers.
- Advanced refractory STS presents a therapeutic challenge.
- Antiangiogenic therapy offers a potential treatment strategy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy and safety of apatinib in advanced refractory STS.
- To explore the impact of histologic subtypes on apatinib's effectiveness.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective, multicenter study of 26 patients with advanced refractory STS.
- Apatinib administered orally (250-850 mg/day).
- Primary endpoints: objective response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR); Secondary endpoints: progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).
Main Results:
- ORR was 34.62% and DCR was 84.62%.
- Median PFS was 6.0 months and median OS was 19.3 months.
- Histologic subtypes like rhabdomyosarcoma and alveolar soft part sarcoma showed higher response rates. Common adverse events included hand-foot skin reaction and hypertension.
Conclusions:
- Apatinib shows promising efficacy and a manageable safety profile for advanced refractory STS.
- Treatment response appears to be influenced by STS histology.
