The efficacy and safety of Apatinib combined with TACE in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: The timely and effective treatments are vital to the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, and the role of Apatinib combined with TACE in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Apatinib combined with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. METHODS: We searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on Apatinib and TACE use in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, PubMed, China Biomedical Literature Database, China Knowledge Network, Wanfang Database, and Weipu Chinese Science and Technology Journal Database were searched up to 16 April 2021. Two researchers independently screened the literature and extracted data according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. RevMan 5.3 software was used for Meta-analysis. This meta-analysis protocol had been registered online (available at: https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2021-6-0047/). RESULTS: A total of 14 RCTs involving 936 hepatocellular carcinoma patients were included. The objective remission rate (OR = 2.93, 95% CI 2.17–3.95), 1-year survival (OR = 2.47, 95% CI 1.65–3.68), 2-year survival (OR = 2.67, 95% CI 1.41–5.04), the incidence of hand-foot syndrome (OR = 32.09, 95% CI 10.87–94.74) and the incidence of proteinuria (OR = 14.79, 95% CI 6.07–36.06) of the Apatinib + TACE group was significantly higher than that of the TACE group (all P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in the incidence of myelosuppression (OR = 1.01, 95% CI 0.61–1.67), the incidence of hypertension (OR = 7.56, 95% CI 0.95–1.67, P = 60.17) between Apatinib + TACE and TACE group (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Apatinib combined with TACE is more effective than TACE alone in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma, but it has certain adverse reactions. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12957-021-02451-8.