Regorafenib: A Review of Its Use in Patients with Advanced Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumours

Regorafenib (Stivarga (R)) is an orally administered small molecule inhibitor of multiple protein kinases, including kinases involved in oncogenesis and tumour angiogenesis. It was initially approved for use in patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer. Based on the findings of the phase III GRID clinical trial, approval for regorafenib has been expanded to include the treatment of advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) following the failure of imatinib and sunitinib. In the GRID trial, regorafenib significantly improved progression-free survival and was associated with a significantly higher disease control rate than placebo. No significant between-group difference was observed in overall survival (OS) in the trial; however, the high proportion of patients who crossed over from placebo to regorafenib likely impacted the OS analysis. Regorafenib has an acceptable tolerability profile, with most adverse events being manageable with dose modification and/or supportive measures. The most commonly reported drug-related adverse events among patients receiving regorafenib in the GRID trial were hand-foot skin reaction, hypertension, diarrhoea and fatigue. In conclusion, regorafenib presents a valuable new tool in the treatment of patients with advanced GISTs following the failure of imatinib and sunitinib.