title: Rasburicase therapy in acute hyperuricemia and renal dysfunction.
abstract: Neoplastic disorders may be complicated by acute renal failure (ARF). Different tumors may cause ARF: solid tumors involving the kidney, solid tumors not of hematological origin and not primarily involving the kidney or, more frequently, rapidly developing hematological tumors. The pathogenesis of ARF is different depending on the type of cancer, but the most frequent clinical feature is the acute tumor lysis syndrome, characterized by hyperuricemia, hyperphosphatemia, hyperkalemia, hypocalcemia and acute, frequently oliguric, ARF. The presence of a neoplastic disorder and associated acute illness may sometimes lead to the presence of immunodysfunction, septic complications and multiple organ dysfunction. In these settings patients develop systemic inflammation and diffuse endothelial damage, related to different mediators. Among these substances, in cancer patients, high circulating levels of uric acid are a common finding. Hyperuricemia is caused by the increase of purine metabolism, which is result of the increased cellular turnover or the aggressive cancer chemotherapy regimens that worsen cell lysis and release of purine metabolites. Even if hyperuricemia is not the first insult to the kidney, its development might represent a concomitant factor aggravating other previous or simultaneous insults. The most efficient therapy for lowering uric acid is rasburicase, a recombinant form of urate oxidase, a nonhuman proteolytic enzyme that oxidizes uric acid to allantoin. It is efficacious in reducing serum uric acid levels with associated diuresis more effectively and much faster than allopurinol, and to correct renal dysfunction more rapidly than allopurinol.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nephrology, St. Bortolo Hospital, Vicenza, Italy.
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ronco
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Inguaggiato
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bordoni
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Cal
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bonello
authors.forename: Emilios
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Andrikos
authors.forename: Yavuz
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Assuman
authors.forename: Ranishta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rattanarat
authors.forename: Rinaldo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bellomo
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D058186:Acute Kidney Injury / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D033461:Hyperuricemia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D014503:Urate Oxidase / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: C469709:rasburicase; D014503:Urate Oxidase