Mycophenolate mofetil as a successful treatment of corticosteroid-resistant immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced hepatitis
Kenji Nakano, Masatoshi Nishizawa, Naoki Fukuda, Tetsuya Urasaki, Xiaofei Wang, Hiroki Mitani, Shunji Takahashi
Abstract
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are now widely used to many malignant diseases, but some patients suffer from immune-related adverse events during or after ICI treatments. The monoclonal antibody infliximab is usually chosen as a salvage treatment to combat corticosteroid-resistant adverse events, but infliximab is not recommended as a response to hepatitis because of the potential risk of liver failure. An alternative treatment option has not been established. We treated a head and neck cancer patient (a 50-year-old Japanese male) who suffered from corticosteroid-resistant hepatitis during treatment with nivolumab, an anti-PD-1 ICI, and that was recovered by mycophenolate mofetil salvage therapy.