pazopanib and Intestinal-Perforation

Cervical cancer ranks as the fourth leading cause of death from cancer in women. Historically, women with metastatic or recurrent cervical cancer have had limited treatment options. New anti-angiogenesis therapies, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) targeting agents, offer an alternative strategy to conventional chemotherapy; they act by inhibiting the growth of new blood vessels, thereby restricting tumour growth by blocking the blood supply.. To assess the benefits and harms of VEGF targeting agents in the management of persistent, recurrent, or metastatic cervical cancer.. We performed searches of the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, Embase, online registers of clinical trials, and abstracts of scientific meetings up until 27 May 2020.. We examined randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the use of VEGF targeting agents alone or in combination with conventional chemotherapy or other VEGF targeting agents.. Three review authors independently screened the results of search strategies, extracted data, assessed risk of bias, and analysed data according to the standard methods expected by Cochrane. The certainty of evidence was assessed via the GRADE approach.. A total of 1634 records were identified. From these, we identified four studies with a total of 808 participants for inclusion. We also identified two studies that were awaiting classification and nine ongoing studies. Bevacizumab plus chemotherapy versus chemotherapy Treatment with bevacizumab plus chemotherapy may result in lower risk of death compared to chemotherapy alone (hazard ratio (HR) 0.77, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.62 to 0.95; 1 study, 452 participants; low-certainty evidence). However, there are probably more specific adverse events when compared to chemotherapy alone, including gastrointestinal perforations or fistulae (risk ratio (RR) 18.00, 95% CI 2.42 to 133.67; 1 study, 440 participants; moderate-certainty evidence); serious thromboembolic events (RR 4.5, 95% CI 1.55 to 13.08; 1 study, 440 participants; moderate-certainty evidence); and hypertension (RR 13.75, 95% CI 5.07 to 37.29; 1 study, 440 participants; moderate-certainty evidence). There may also be a higher incidence of serious haemorrhage (RR 5.00, 95% CI 1.11 to 22.56; 1 study, 440 participants; low-certainty evidence). In addition, the incidence of serious adverse events is probably higher (RR 1.44, 95% CI 1.16 to 1.79; 1 study, 439 participants; moderate-certainty evidence). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was USD 295,164 per quality-adjusted life-year (1 study, 452 participants; low-certainty evidence). Cediranib plus chemotherapy versus chemotherapy Treatment with cediranib plus chemotherapy may or may not result in similar risk of death when compared to chemotherapy alone (HR 0.94, 95% CI 0.53 to 1.65; 1 study, 69 participants; low-certainty evidence). We found very uncertain results for the incidences of specific adverse events, including gastrointestinal perforations or fistulae (RR 3.27, 95% CI 0.14 to 77.57; 1 study, 67 participants; very low-certainty evidence); serious haemorrhage (RR 5.45, 95% CI 0.27 to 109.49; 1 study, 67 participants; very low-certainty evidence); serious thromboembolic events (RR 3.41, 95% CI 0.14 to 80.59; 1 study, 60 participants; very low-certainty evidence); and serious hypertension (RR 0.36, 95% CI 0.02 to 8.62; 1 study, 67 participants; very low-certainty evidence). In addition, there may or may not be a similar incidence of serious adverse events compared to chemotherapy alone (RR 1.15, 95% CI 0.75 to 1.78; 1 study, 67 participants; low-certainty evidence). Apatinib plus chemotherapy or chemotherapy/brachytherapy versus chemot. We found low-certainty evidence in favour of the use of bevacizumab plus chemotherapy. However, bevacizumab probably increases specific adverse events (gastrointestinal perforations or fistulae, thromboembolic events, hypertension) and serious adverse events. We found low-certainty evidence that does not support the use of cediranib plus chemotherapy, apatinib plus chemotherapy, apatinib plus chemotherapy/brachytherapy, or pazopanib monotherapy. We found low-certainty evidence suggesting that pazopanib plus lapatinib worsens outcomes. The VEGF inhibitors apatinib and pazopanib may increase the probability of hypertension events.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Angiogenesis Inhibitors; Antineoplastic Agents; Bevacizumab; Bias; Brachytherapy; Combined Modality Therapy; Confidence Intervals; Female; Gastric Fistula; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage; Humans; Hypertension; Indazoles; Intestinal Fistula; Intestinal Perforation; Lapatinib; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Progression-Free Survival; Pyridines; Pyrimidines; Quality of Life; Quinazolines; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Sulfonamides; Thromboembolism; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; Young Adult

As precision medicine has become a focus in oncology in recent years, many targeted and biologic agents are being used along with or in place of traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy. As these drugs have been developed and some have received FDA approval, we have gained substantial data about the adverse event profiles. However, the management and approach to the toxicities incurred and subsequent complications are often not well understood, especially for physicians who have a varied clinical practice. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the frequency and types of adverse events and appropriate management steps when prescribing modern targeted therapies for gynecologic cancers in the classes of anti-angiogenic agents, poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, and immunotherapy drugs.

Topics: Anemia; Angiogenesis Inhibitors; Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological; Autoimmune Diseases; Bevacizumab; Diarrhea; Epistaxis; Fatigue; Female; Genital Neoplasms, Female; Headache; Hemorrhage; Humans; Hypertension; Indazoles; Intestinal Perforation; Molecular Targeted Therapy; Nausea; Neutropenia; Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase Inhibitors; Precision Medicine; Proteinuria; Pyrimidines; Risk Assessment; Sulfonamides; Vomiting; Water-Electrolyte Imbalance

Pazopanib is a vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (VEGFR TKI) that inhibits the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor A pathway and has the potential to cause ischaemic bowel changes, including perforation. Here we report a case of a 51-year-old man with large, metastatic, retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma that developed a tumour-bowel fistula after 4 weeks of pazopanib therapy. He presented to the emergency department with sepsis and 1-week history of worsening fever, chills, nausea and diarrhoea. Abdominal CT findings of mesenteric and portal vein gas, commonly found in mesenteric ischaemia and VEGFR modulator-induced bowel toxicity, provided evidence for the causal relation. Unfortunately, the case was not amenable to surgery and patient succumbed to the illness.

Topics: Angiogenesis Inhibitors; Diagnosis, Differential; Humans; Indazoles; Intestinal Fistula; Intestinal Perforation; Leiomyosarcoma; Male; Middle Aged; Pyrimidines; Retroperitoneal Neoplasms; Sulfonamides; Tomography, X-Ray Computed