What to do if you have high blood pressure after taking sunitinib for kidney cancer

Sunitinib is a kinase inhibitor found as the malate salt in sunitinib capsules. Sunitinib is used to treat advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) that are resistant or intolerant to imatinib mesylate. Preclinical and/or clinical studies have shown that these RTKs are critical factors in the progression of specific tumor types and linked the inhibition of these RTKs by sunitinib to its anti-tumor activity. In particular, genetic dysregulation of KIT or PDGFR-alpha (PDGFR-a) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of GIST and dysregulation of VEGFR- and PDGFR-dependent tumor angiogenesis, as well as the progression of clear cell RCC.

In the pooled safety population,29% of patients had hypertension. Grade 3 hypertension was reported in 7% of patients and grade 4 hypertension was reported in 0.2% of patients. Monitor baseline blood pressure as clinically indicated, and the physician may initiate and/or adjust antihypertensive therapy as appropriate. For grade 3 hypertension, it is recommended that sunitinib be discontinued until remission to grade ≤ 1 or baseline and then continued at a reduced dose. Sunitinib should be discontinued in patients who develop grade 4 hypertension.

The original sunitinib drug has been launched in China and has entered the scope of Class B medical insurance. SpecificationsThe price of 12.5mg*28 tablets is around RMB 3,500. The original sunitinib drug has also been launched overseas. The price of 12.5mg*7 tablets is around RMB 1,500 (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate). There are also generic drugs produced in other countries. The price of 12.5mg*28 tablets produced by an Indian pharmaceutical factory is around RMB 750 (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate). The ingredients of the generic drugs produced abroad are basically the same as those of the original drugs at home and abroad. There may be differences in the prices of different specifications of drugs.