sunitinib + capecitabine

Sunitinib + capecitabine is a combination of two orally administered small molecule drugs used in oncology clinical trials for advanced solid tumors, including breast, pancreatic, thyroid, neuroendocrine, bladder, colorectal cancer, and cholangiocarcinoma[1][3]. Sunitinib is a multi-targeted receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor that blocks several kinases involved in tumor growth and angiogenesis such as platelet-derived growth factor receptors (PDGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (VEGFR), KIT (CD117), RET, CSF-1R, and FLT3[5][6]. Capecitabine is an antimetabolite prodrug converted to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) preferentially within tumor cells; 5-FU inhibits thymidylate synthase and disrupts DNA/RNA synthesis leading to apoptosis[8]. The combination has shown manageable safety profiles with some overlapping toxicities such as hand-foot syndrome and diarrhea. While the rationale for combining these agents includes their different mechanisms of action and potential synergistic antitumor activity[3], phase III studies have not demonstrated improved outcomes over monotherapy in certain settings such as metastatic breast cancer pretreated with anthracyclines[2][4].

Brand names

SutentXeloda

Other names

sunitinib malate