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Updated: May 12, 2026

A Simple Bioassay for the Evaluation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors
09:04

A Simple Bioassay for the Evaluation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors

Published on: March 15, 2016

The progression free survival-plateau with vascular endothelial growth factor receptor inhibitors--is there more to

Viktor Grünwald1, Axel Stuart Merseburger2

  • 1Clinic for Hematology, Hemostasis, Oncology and Stemcell Transplantation, Medical School Hannover, Germany.

European Journal of Cancer (Oxford, England : 1990)
|April 23, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Newer generations of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) offer improved progression-free survival for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients. Third-generation TKIs targeting additional receptors show promise for more effective RCC treatments.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treatment has evolved with targeted therapies.
  • First-generation vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) like sunitinib, sorafenib, and pazopanib demonstrated clinical activity.
  • Second-generation VEGFR TKIs (axitinib, tivozanib) offer improved specificity and toxicity profiles.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the evolution of TKIs in metastatic RCC treatment.
  • To compare the efficacy and safety of different TKI generations.
  • To explore emerging therapeutic targets and third-generation TKIs.

Main Methods:

  • Review of pivotal clinical trials and randomized controlled trials.
  • Analysis of progression-free survival (PFS) data.
  • Evaluation of TKI inhibitory profiles against VEGFR, MET, and FGFR.

Main Results:

  • Second-generation VEGFR TKIs demonstrated an advantage in PFS compared to first-generation TKIs.
  • PFS plateaued around 13-14 months in first-line treatment, indicating a need for further advancements.
  • Third-generation TKIs targeting MET and FGFR show promising early clinical trial results.

Conclusions:

  • Second-generation TKIs represent an advancement in RCC treatment, though PFS remains limited.
  • Novel targets like MET and FGFR are being explored with third-generation TKIs.
  • Ongoing trials will determine if expanded target inhibition leads to more effective RCC therapies.

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