Critical appraisal of sorafenib in the treatment of Chinese patients with renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for 3% of all malignancies, and is the most aggressive cancer of the genitourinary system. Metastatic RCC is naturally resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and immunotherapy is of little benefit. In recent years, the emergence of molecular-targeted therapies has largely changed the therapeutic approach to metastatic RCC. These novel multikinase inhibitors have now become first-choice therapy because of their activity in inhibiting both cell proliferation and tumor angiogenesis. Sorafenib is the first tyrosine kinase inhibitor found to be effective in treating patients with metastatic RCC. Due to its good efficacy and safety, this agent is recommended as both first-line and second-line therapy for metastatic RCC in the People’s Republic of China. Sorafenib seems to be more effective in patients of Chinese ethnicity than in western patients, and is well tolerated with a manageable toxicity profile, even at higher dosages and when used in combination with other anticancer agents. Novel biomarkers for predicting the efficacy of sorafenib have potential clinical value for guiding individualized targeted therapy.