Medical Oncology, I,R,C,C,S, San Matteo University Hospital Foundation, Piazzale C, Golgi 19, 27100 Pavia, Italy.
Multikinase inhibitors (MKIs) sunitinib and sorafenib have become a standard of care for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). This study assessed safety and treatment patterns for these agents in a real-world clinical practice setting in Italy.
A retrospective medical record review was performed at a tertiary oncology center in Italy. The study included MKI-naïve non-trial patients ≥18 years old, with a histological diagnosis of mRCC, and who received sunitinib or sorafenib as first MKI during 9/2005-7/2008. Data were collected on adverse events (AEs), treatment modifications (discontinuations, interruptions, dose changes), and reasons for these modifications.
145 patients were included; 85 received sunitinib and 60 received sorafenib as first-line MKI. Median treatment duration was 6.6 (sunitinib) and 5.8 (sorafenib) months. 97.6% and 70.0% of patients receiving sunitinib and sorafenib, respectively, experienced ≥1 AE; 27.1% and 31.7% had ≥1 grade 3/4 AE. The most common any grade AE for sunitinib was fatigue/asthenia (81.2%), followed by mucositis/stomatitis (58.8%) and decreased taste sensation (42.4%), while for sorafenib this was fatigue/asthenia (43.3%) followed by hand-foot syndrome (38.3%) and diarrhea (31.7%). Treatment discontinuation, interruption, and dose reduction due to AEs occurred in 11.8%, 23.5%, and 30.6%, respectively, of patients receiving sunitinib, and 5.0%, 23.3%, and 36.7%, respectively, of patients receiving sorafenib.
In this retrospective study, most patients experienced ≥1 AE during first-line MKI treatment. AEs were reported frequently and resulted in treatment modifications in 40% of patients receiving sunitinib and 45% of patients receiving sorafenib. These results suggest a need for additional effective and more tolerable treatments for mRCC.
Written by:
Porta C, Paglino C, Imarisio I, Canipari C, Chen K, Neary M, Duh MS. Are you the author?
Reference: BMC Cancer. 2011 Mar 24;11:105.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2407-11-105
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 21435216
UroToday.com Renal Cancer Section
