Systematic comparison with autoimmune liver disease identifies specific histological features of immune checkpoint inhibitor-related adverse events

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have become a mainstay of cancer treatment. Their immune-boosting quality has one major drawback, their proclivity to induce a broad array of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) affecting, among others, the liver and sharing some similarities with classic autoimmune liver diseases (AILD).We aimed to compare clinical, laboratory and histological features of patients with liver-related irAEs and AILD.

Methods: We systematically compared liver irAEs with AILD, namely autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and primary biliary cholangitis, regarding their clinical, laboratory, and histological features.

Results: Twenty-seven patients with liver irAEs (ICI group) and 14 patients with AILD were identified. We observed three distinct ICI-induced histological liver injury patterns: hepatitic (52%), cholangitic (19%), and mixed (29%). When comparing the ICI and AILD groups, centrilobular injury as well as granuloma formation were more prevalent in the former (p=0.067 and 0.002, respectively). CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios were heterogeneous between the two groups, without statistically significant difference but with a trend toward increased CD8+ T cells among hepatitic irAEs as compared with AIH. Pattern of liver function test alteration was predictive for the type of irAEs but did not correlate with histological severity.

Conclusions: Liver irAEs have broad clinical, laboratory and histological presentations. Histological features of irAEs and AILD are distinct, likely underpinning their different immunological mechanisms.