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ISSN 2097-3497 (Online)
CN 22-1108/R
Volume 41 Issue 11
Nov.  2025
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Article Contents

Efficacy and mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine combined with immune checkpoint inhibitor in treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

DOI: 10.12449/JCH251130
Research funding:

National Natural Science Foundation of China (82474419);

National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine High Level Key Discipline Construction Project of Traditional Chinese Medicine (zyyzdxk-2023005);

Capital’s Funds for Health Improvement and Research (2024-1-2173)

More Information
  • Corresponding author: WANG Xianbo, wangxianbo638@163.com (ORCID: 0000-0002-3593-5741)
  • Received Date: 2025-03-26
  • Accepted Date: 2025-05-09
  • Published Date: 2025-11-25
  • Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumor with high incidence and mortality rates in China, and advanced HCC is a difficult issue in current treatment. Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI), as an emerging treatment regimen, has shown a certain effect in clinical practice, but there are still problems such as low overall response rate and a high incidence rate of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Traditional Chinese medicine exhibits unique advantages in the treatment of advanced HCC. Through a retrospective analysis of related studies in recent years, this article shows that traditional Chinese medicine combined with ICI can control disease progression, prolong survival time, and reduce irAEs in the treatment of advanced HCC through the synergistic effect between multiple components, targets, and pathways. The potential mechanism of this treatment modality may involve various aspects such as the direct inhibition of tumor cells and the regulation of immune system and intestinal flora.

     

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