Pfizer’s Sutent (Sunitinib) is an approved anti-cancer adjuvant, which works as a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, approved for many cancers such as renal cell carcinoma. Dr. Eric Baudin, Chairman at Gustave Roussy, France, presented data from a clinical trial that reworked Sunitinib as an adrenal cancer drug.

FIRSTMAPP was designed as the first randomized, double-blind, academic Phase 2 trial to evaluate the effectiveness of Sunitinib to treat malignant pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (mPGGL)- a very rare subtype of adrenal cancer. Compared against the placebo arm, Sunitinib performed well in progression free survival, overall survival, and partial responses, with manageable adverse events and an acceptable safety profile. 

Discussing the success of Sunitinib as a potential therapy for mPPGL, Dr. Rocio Garcia Carbonero, from the Gastrointestinal Tumor Unit at the Hospital Universitario Doce de Octubre in Madrid, mentioned the requirement of a robust treatment for this very rare cancer. She made a case for angiogenesis inhibitors as an effective intervention for mPGGL since most patients have germline mutations in the developmental pathway required for angiogenesis and hypoxia sensing.