Sunitinib
Multitargeted receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor · also known as sunitinib malate, Sutent
Multitargeted oncology kinase inhibitor represented by one MCAS case and a separate systemic-mastocytosis case with limiting toxicities.
- How it relates to mast cells
- MCAS patients
- Types of studies cited
- Case report
- Approved in the US for
- gastrointestinal stromal tumor after progression on or intolerance to imatinib, advanced renal cell carcinoma, adjuvant treatment after nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma at high recurrence risk, progressive unresectable or metastatic pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors
- Catalog context
- Emerging / refractory evidence
What this relationship means: Studied in people diagnosed with mast cell activation syndrome. Current evidence consists of case reports, uncontrolled series, or retrospective review rather than randomised comparisons — so it establishes that people have taken it, not that it worked.
Mechanism of action
Sunitinib inhibits several receptor tyrosine kinases, including KIT, vascular-endothelial-growth-factor receptors, platelet-derived-growth-factor receptors, FLT3, RET, and CSF-1R. KIT is central to mast-cell survival and regulation, but a multitargeted kinase profile also produces effects far beyond mast cells. The direct MCAS case did not measure a mast-cell pharmacodynamic endpoint.
The MCAS publication describes one person with severe disease labelled refractory to multiple preceding agents. It is a direct exposure report, not a comparison. A later open case report used sunitinib in aggressive systemic mastocytosis and documented both clinical observations and treatment-limiting laboratory changes. That clonal-disease case is useful counter-context because it shows that the mechanism and toxicity cannot be inferred from the earlier MCAS narrative alone.
The current US label limits sunitinib to specified cancers and carries a boxed warning for hepatotoxicity. Cardiovascular events, hypertension, hemorrhage, blood-count changes, thyroid effects, wound-healing complications, and other oncology-level risks keep this entry in the emerging/refractory evidence group rather than the numbered MCAS sequence.
Sources
- Successful treatment of mast cell activation syndrome with sunitinib Peer-reviewed study 2015 PMID 26072665 · link checked 21 Aug 2026
- Case Report: Treatment of systemic mastocytosis with sunitinib Peer-reviewed study 2018 PMID 29770197 · link checked 21 Aug 2026
- SUTENT current US prescribing information Drug label · link checked 21 Aug 2026