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Printable monograph

Gamma-secretase inhibitor

Nirogacestat

Ogsiveo · Niro

Gamma-secretase inhibitor · approved 2023 · 7 citations

Recent· through 2024
Fairly sourced5/9 · 5 signals
  • Met: 7 citations
  • Not met: 12+ references
  • Not met: Accrued over 10+ years (span: 7y)
  • Met: Beyond single case reports
  • Met: High-impact journal
  • Met: Landmark reference
  • Met: Current through 2024
  • Not met: Real-world FAERS signal

Describes how this page is sourced, not how dangerous the drug is. Thinly sourced means fewer of the sourcing signals are met — not that the agent is kidney-safe. A rule-based summary, not a formal certainty appraisal.

A gamma-secretase inhibitor for desmoid tumors — watch phosphate and electrolytes.

MildGamma-secretase inhibitor
Desmoid tumors (aggressive fibromatosis)
§01

Signature kidney injury

Signature lesion

Representative incidence42%

Hypophosphatemia occurred in 42% of nirogacestat-treated patients in the DeFi trial, alongside other electrolyte disturbances; the characteristic DeFi-trial toxicities were diarrhea, rash, nausea, fatigue and ovarian dysfunction. Beyond the phosphate signal, renal-specific incidence is not well quantified.Source: Gounder et al., N Engl J Med 2023 (DeFi, hypophosphatemia 42%)

Onset & rechallenge

Time to injuryVariable / unpredictable

Occurs during therapy but is not well characterized.

Distilled from: “During therapy; not well characterized.”

§02

Renal toxicities, ranked

This agent's kidney lesions ordered by prominence — the #1 signature lesion first, then secondary and rare patterns. Cited incidence is shown where a citable figure exists; otherwise the tier stands qualitatively.

  1. hypophosphatemia 42% (DeFi phase 3)

  2. Fanconi SyndromeSecondaryqualitative — no citable incidence

    Global failure of proximal tubule reabsorption — glucosuria, phosphaturia and acidosis, classically from ifosfamide.

Toxicity fingerprint

Tap a signature to trace where it strikes the nephron.

42%incidence
SeverityMild
ReversibilityReversible
Evidence7 citations
Nephron map
Proximal Tubule
Distal Tubule / Collecting DuctFine-tuning of Na, K, Mg, acid & water

Electrolyte Disturbance

Renal electrolyte derangement — magnesium/potassium/calcium wasting (cisplatin, anti-EGFR antibodies) or retention (FGFR-inhibitor hyperphosphatemia, tumor-lysis hyperkalemia/hyperphosphatemia).

§03

Kidney injury

Mechanism of kidney injury

Gamma-secretase/Notch signaling participates in epithelial differentiation and mineral/phosphate homeostasis; its inhibition is postulated to perturb proximal-tubular electrolyte and phosphate handling, producing hypophosphatemia and other electrolyte shifts (a partial proximal-tubular/Fanconi-like phenotype is the conceptual concern). Robust nephron-level human data are lacking, so characterization is conservative and class/electrolyte-based rather than tied to a defined tubular lesion. Diarrhea-related volume/electrolyte loss can compound the picture.

Clinical presentation

Hypophosphatemia and other electrolyte abnormalities on labs; if a proximal-tubular pattern occurs, low phosphate with phosphaturia and possibly glucosuria/aminoaciduria. Serum creatinine is usually preserved.

Management

Electrolyte and phosphate repletion; supportive care for diarrhea-related losses; dose interruption/modification per label for significant toxicity. No specific renal antidote; abnormalities are generally reversible.Lesion-level management framework

Risk factors

  • Baseline electrolyte/phosphate disturbance
  • Concurrent diarrhea/volume loss
  • Pre-existing CKD
  • Poor oral intake

Prevention

  • Oral phosphate/electrolyte repletion as needed
  • Hydration during diarrhea
  • Address contributing GI toxicity early
Anticancer mechanism· how it treats cancer

Oral gamma-secretase inhibitor that blocks the regulated intramembrane proteolysis of Notch (and other gamma-secretase substrates), preventing release of the Notch intracellular domain and downstream transcription. In desmoid tumors (aggressive fibromatosis), Notch-pathway suppression drives the antitumor effect.

Note · Renal involvement is limited to electrolyte/phosphate disturbance; there is no established intrinsic nephrotoxic lesion. The phosphate signal warrants periodic monitoring even though a defined Fanconi syndrome has not been characterized for this agent.
§04

Clinical depth

Renal dose adjustment

No established renal dose adjustment; not studied in significant renal impairment. Modify dose for GI/dermatologic toxicity per label rather than for GFR. CYP3A interactions apply.

Dialyzability & ESKD dosing

Hepatically metabolized small molecule; dialyzability not characterized and not the management focus. In advanced CKD, monitor and replete electrolytes/phosphate.

Differential diagnosis

Drug-related hypophosphatemia/electrolyte shift vs diarrhea-driven losses vs a true proximal-tubular (Fanconi) pattern (which would add glucosuria/aminoaciduria/normoglycemic phosphaturia); urine studies clarify if creatinine or phosphate handling is unexpectedly abnormal.

Monitoring

  • Serum phosphate, potassium, magnesium and bicarbonate periodically
  • Stool frequency and volume status during diarrhea

Key trials & series

  • DeFi (Gounder NEJM 2023) phase III in progressing desmoid tumors

Clinical pearls

  • Monitor phosphate — hypophosphatemia is the most consistent renal-relevant lab finding with this gamma-secretase inhibitor.
  • There is no defined nephrotoxic lesion; the kidney shows up as electrolyte/phosphate disturbance, often reversible with repletion.
  • Diarrhea is common — distinguish GI-driven electrolyte loss from a primary tubular effect.
  • Ovarian dysfunction and skin/GI toxicity dominate the overall profile; renal issues are secondary.
§05

References

6 primary references — trials, cohorts, mechanism, and reviews. Single-patient case reports are listed separately below, graded by strength. Citation metadata via PubMed / NLM.

Evidence accrual

6 references · 2017–2024 · 3 since 2022
202017: 1 citation2021: 2 citations2023: 2 citations2024: 1 citation201720202024

Primary (non–case-report) references per year — a proxy for how actively the agent's renal literature is accruing. Recent years are highlighted. Reflects curation depth, not a systematic bibliometric count.

  1. 1.LandmarkNirogacestat, a gamma-Secretase Inhibitor for Desmoid Tumors.Gounder M et al. · N Engl J Med · 2023 · PMID 36884323Pivotal DeFi trial describing the adverse-event profile including electrolyte/phosphate disturbances.
  2. 2.Conventional Chemotherapy Nephrotoxicity.Gupta S et al. · Adv Chronic Kidney Dis · 2021 · PMID 35190107Onconephrology reference for drug-related electrolyte and proximal-tubular disturbances.
  3. 3.Examining nirogacestat for adults with progressing desmoid tumors who require systemic treatment.Campos F et al. · Expert Opin Pharmacother · 2024 · PMID 39414771Review of nirogacestat mechanism (NOTCH/gamma-secretase), pharmacology and toxicity, noting need for long-term safety data.
  4. 4.Renal Side Effects of Novel Molecular Targeted Oncologic Agents.Fenoglio R et al. · G Ital Nefrol · 2023 · PMID 38007829Onconephrology overview of renal effects of novel targeted agents, including delayed/under-recognized electrolyte and tubular effects.
  5. 5.Adverse kidney effects of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors.Izzedine H et al. · Nephrol Dial Transplant · 2017 · PMID 28339780Model of targeted-agent tubular electrolyte/phosphate wasting, a useful comparator for the gamma-secretase electrolyte signal.
  6. 6.Current Trends in Anti-Cancer Molecular Targeted Therapies: Renal Complications and Their Histological Features.Tonooka A et al. · J Nippon Med Sch · 2021 · PMID 34840210Histologic survey of targeted-therapy renal complications, framing the absence of a defined gamma-secretase-inhibitor lesion.
Case reports — ranked by strength· 1

Single-patient and small-series reports, graded by evidentiary strength — A Strong (biopsy-proven plus a series and/or positive rechallenge), B Moderate, and C Limited (a single clinically-diagnosed case). Strongest first. Grades are inferred automatically from each report's abstract and journal — a heuristic ranking aid, not a formal quality appraisal.

What gets reported — FAERS

Everything below is FAERS — adverse events someone chose to report, about 838 of them for this agent. Nobody counts the patients who were fine, so none of these numbers is an incidence, a risk, or a rate: they describe what gets reported, shaped by a drug's fame, its indication, and who was watching. How these numbers work.

  • Reporting odds ratio (ROR) — is kidney injury named in this agent's reports more often than in every other drug's? Above 1 means yes, disproportionately.
  • Renal phenotypes — the same question asked separately for each kind of kidney injury, so the ratios differ from the overall one and from each other.
  • Outcomes — a share of this agent's own reports, not of patients: how many were filed as involving a death or a hospitalization. Not a case-fatality rate.
FAERS reported renal phenotypes· 1 signal

Only significant signals appear (95% CI lower bound above 1) — a phenotype missing here was tested and did not reach significance, except Prerenal / Hemodynamic AKI, Pseudo-AKI, Renal Cysts, Chronic Interstitial Nephropathy — outside the clinician-reviewed MedDRA term map, never queried — and ATN and AIN, queried but biopsy-bound: real cases are filed as generic “acute kidney injury”, so their absence is not a negative. As of 2026-10-01.

What reporting says about this profile's documented lesions

  • Electrolyte Disturbancecorroborated · ROR 3.9 — but the naming terms alone are not disproportionate, so this rests on terms merely consistent with the lesion
  • Fanconi SyndromeNo disproportionate reporting — This phenotype IS reportable and this agent has enough reports, yet the reporting is not disproportionate — the one genuinely informative negative of the four.
Electrolyte Disturbance
ROR 3.9095% CI 2.69–5.65· 29 reports
FAERS outcomes & reporting trend· 1% of reports w/ death · 13.5% w/ hospitalization
1%

Reported with a death outcome

8 of 838 reports

13.5%

Reported with hospitalization

113 of 838 reports

Reports per year

  • 2015: 0 reports
  • 2016: 0 reports
  • 2017: 0 reports
  • 2018: 0 reports
  • 2019: 0 reports
  • 2020: 1 reports
  • 2021: 2 reports
  • 2022: 15 reports
  • 2023: 22 reports
  • 2024: 563 reports
  • 2025: 156 reports
  • 2026: 79 reports

Yearly FAERS report volume · most recent year is partial.

FAERS adverse-event signal — all organ systems· 9 systems · 838 reports

Bars rank systems by summed reaction-term mentions (a report counts once per term it names) — an ordinal “more vs less reported” cue, not a tally of distinct reports. Renal & urinary first. As of 2026-10-01.

Disproportionality (acute kidney injury):ROR 0.8295% CI 0.34–1.98· 5 AKI reports ·no disproportionate AKI reporting signal (CI spans 1).
Gastrointestinal
Diarrhoea305Nausea193Vomiting75Stomatitis59Abdominal Discomfort39
General / constitutional
Fatigue163Pyrexia33Pain31Asthenia28Oropharyngeal Pain27
Skin
Rash109Pruritus44Alopecia42
Nervous system
Headache87Dizziness28
Vascular
Epistaxis37Hot Flush35
Metabolic & electrolyte
Dehydration35Decreased Appetite32
Respiratory
Cough47
Psychiatric
Insomnia28
Immune / infection
Nasopharyngitis24
Guidelines & consensus· 13

Each recommendation below is this atlas's faithful summary of the source, not a quotation from it — follow the PubMed link for the wording the society published. Summaries may be superseded; consult the current full text and individualize to the patient.

General onco-nephrology references

ADQIThe nephrotoxic effects of anti-cancer therapies: consensus report of the 34th Acute Disease Quality Initiative workgroupNat Rev Nephrol 2026 · PMID 41361704Provides expert-based statements (modified Delphi) on preventing and managing cisplatin/platinum-associated AKI, including isotonic IV hydration, attention to volume status and concomitant nephrotoxins, and incorporates evidence that IV magnesium supplementation may reduce cisplatin-associated AKI; emphasizes risk stratification and standardized AKI definitions.SIRMSIRM-SIN-AIOM: appropriateness criteria for evaluation and prevention of renal damage in the patient undergoing contrast medium examinations-consensus statements from Italian College of Radiology (SIRM), Italian College of Nephrology (SIN) and Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM)Radiol Med 2022 · PMID 35303246Recommends eGFR-based renal risk assessment and pre/post-contrast isotonic saline or sodium bicarbonate hydration; advises maintaining a 5-7 day interval between iodinated contrast administration and cisplatin in cancer patients to reduce additive nephrotoxicity.KDIGOKDIGO Controversies Conference on onco-nephrology: understanding kidney impairment and solid-organ malignancies, and managing kidney cancerKidney Int 2020 · PMID 33126977Identifies platinum compounds (especially cisplatin) as leading cytotoxic causes of acute tubular injury, AKI, and electrolyte/magnesium wasting; calls for interdisciplinary onco-nephrology care, accurate GFR estimation, and individualized drug dosing in patients with reduced kidney function.KDIGOKDIGO Controversies Conference on onco-nephrology: kidney disease in hematological malignancies and the burden of cancer after kidney transplantationKidney Int 2020 · PMID 33276867Addresses chemotherapy-associated AKI/CKD in hematologic cancer, GFR estimation and chemotherapy dosing in patients with reduced kidney function, and management priorities and research gaps for onco-nephrology care.ADDIKDIntegrating International Consensus Guidelines for Anticancer Drug Dosing in Kidney Dysfunction (ADDIKD) into everyday practiceEClinicalMedicine 2025 · PMID 40290844Provides GRADE-based, drug-specific dose-adjustment recommendations for anticancer agents in kidney dysfunction (illustrated for methotrexate, cisplatin, carboplatin and nivolumab); the recommendations build on Part 1's standardised CKD-EPI eGFR assessment rather than Cockcroft-Gault creatinine clearance.ADDIKDAligning kidney function assessment in patients with cancer to global practices in internal medicineEClinicalMedicine 2025 · PMID 40290845Three consensus recommendations: assess kidney function by GFR (measured GFR or CKD-EPI eGFR), classify it using KDIGO categories, and use this uniform approach to dose anticancer drugs — moving cancer medicine away from Cockcroft-Gault estimated creatinine clearance.ADDIKDA methodology for determining dosing recommendations for anticancer drugs in patients with reduced kidney functionEClinicalMedicine 2025 · PMID 40290846Establishes that, where RCT evidence is lacking, anticancer drug dosing recommendations in kidney dysfunction should be derived by critically appraising observational literature via GRADE combined with structured international multidisciplinary consensus voting.KDIGODiagnosis, evaluation, and management of acute kidney injury: a KDIGO summary (Part 1)Crit Care 2013 · PMID 23394211Defines/stages AKI by serum creatinine and urine output; emphasizes avoiding nephrotoxins, maintaining euvolemia/perfusion, dose-adjusting drugs to kidney function, and monitoring high-risk patients — the framework applied to nephrotoxic anti-cancer agents.KDIGOExecutive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Evaluation and Management of Chronic Kidney Disease: known knowns and known unknownsKidney Int 2024 · PMID 38519239Evaluate and risk-stratify CKD, manage to delay progression and its complications, and practise explicit medication management and drug stewardship — the framework the atlas's G1–G5 eGFR banding and every renal dose-adjustment recommendation sit inside. Because the guideline excludes dialysis and transplant recipients by its own statement of scope, its recommendations do not carry to those settings, where this atlas's dialyzability and post-transplant guidance rests on other sources.KDIGOExecutive summary of the KDIGO 2021 Guideline for the Management of Glomerular DiseasesKidney Int 2021 · PMID 34556300Provides the staging/treatment framework for drug-associated glomerular lesions (e.g., bisphosphonate- and interferon-related collapsing FSGS, VEGF-inhibitor podocytopathy/proteinuria), including immunosuppression and supportive RAAS-blockade strategies.KDIGOExecutive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of ANCA-Associated VasculitisKidney Int 2024 · PMID 38388147Updates immunosuppressive induction (rituximab/cyclophosphamide), incorporates avacopan and lower-dose or glucocorticoid-sparing regimens — the management framework for drug- and checkpoint-inhibitor-associated ANCA/pauci-immune glomerulonephritis.KDIGOExecutive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Lupus NephritisKidney Int 2024 · PMID 38182299Updates first-line lupus nephritis therapy to combination immunosuppression with the addition of belimumab or a calcineurin inhibitor (voclosporin) — informs management of immune-complex/lupus-like glomerulonephritis encountered with immunotherapy.KDIGOExecutive summary of the KDIGO 2025 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy (IgAN) and Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis (IgAV)Kidney Int 2025 · PMID 40975525Encourages liberal kidney biopsy and stricter proteinuria control (<0.5 g/d, ideally <0.3 g/d) with RAAS blockers, SGLT2 inhibitors, and targeted-release budesonide — the framework for IgA-dominant glomerular lesions, including those triggered by immune-modulating cancer therapy.

Where Nirogacestat sits in nephrotoxicity space — each dot is an anti-cancer agent, positioned so neighbors share a kidney-injury phenotype. Its 6 closest are filled and lead to a numbered marker, matching the numbered cards below.

Position is a 2-D projection (MDS) of each agent's injury signature, nephron target, severity, and class, so two dots can sit close on the page while differing on an axis the projection flattened — the numbered ranking is computed from the full metric, not from the distance you see. Open the full map.
Phenotype-similar agents· the numbered markers on the map above

Imatinib

Gleevec · BCR-ABL TKI

Profile

Fluid retention; rare Fanconi and AKI.

LYTEFANCATN
Mild#1 · 70% phenotype match

Trastuzumab deruxtecan

Enhertu · Antibody-drug conjugate (HER2/DXd)

Profile

Emerging AKI/proteinuria reports — under-published.

ATNFANCLYTE
Moderate#2 · 64% phenotype match

Streptozocin

Zanosar · Nitrosourea alkylator

Profile

Classic proximal tubular toxin → Fanconi and dose-limiting AKI.

FANCATNLYTE
Severe#3 · 59% phenotype match

Azacitidine

Vidaza · Hypomethylating agent

Profile

Proximal (type 2) RTA / Fanconi-like tubulopathy; overt AKI uncommon.

FANCATNLYTE
Moderate#4 · 56% phenotype match

Erdafitinib

Balversa · FGFR inhibitor

Profile

Hyperphosphatemia is an on-target class effect.

LYTE
Moderate#5 · 56% phenotype match

Futibatinib

Lytgobi · FGFR inhibitor

Profile

Hyperphosphatemia, class effect.

LYTE
Moderate#6 · 56% phenotype match
Compare Nirogacestat with its nearest agents

Nearest agents by kidney-injury phenotype (shared injuries, nephron target, severity, class) — a similarity approximation, not a claim of shared drug identity or mechanism.

Kidney risk across Other targeted agents

Same-class agents ordered by their documented kidney-injury profile — atlas severity, an acute-kidney-injury FAERS signal, and how many injury types each is documented to cause. Agents nearer the top carry the lighter documented renal profile.

  1. 1BelzutifanMild
  2. 2CasdatifanMild
  3. 3DordaviproneMild
  4. 4IberdomideMild
  5. 5RucaparibMild
  6. 6SonidegibMild
  7. 7TalazoparibMild
  8. 8GlasdegibMild
  9. 9ImetelstatMild
  10. 10NiraparibMild
  11. 11Nirogacestat· this agentMild
  12. 12OlaparibMild
  13. 13RelacorilantMild
  14. 14SotorasibMild
  15. 15TazemetostatMild
  16. 16VismodegibMild
  17. 17VorasidenibMild
  18. 18PomalidomideMild
  19. 19ThalidomideMild
  20. 20AdagrasibFAERS AKIMild
  21. 21Denileukin diftitoxModerate
  22. 22Afamitresgene autoleucel (Afami-cel)Moderate
  23. 23OlutasidenibModerate
  24. 24ZiftomenibModerate
  25. 25EnasidenibModerate
  26. 26Gallium nitrateModerate
  27. 27IvosidenibModerate
  28. 28LenalidomideModerate
  29. 29RevumenibModerate
  30. 30IxazomibFAERS AKIModerate
  31. 31BortezomibFAERS AKIModerate
  32. 32TagraxofuspFAERS AKIModerate
  33. 33Tretinoin (ATRA)FAERS AKIModerate
  34. 34Arsenic trioxideFAERS AKIModerate
  35. 35LifileucelFAERS AKIModerate
  36. 36SelinexorFAERS AKIModerate
  37. 37Moxetumomab pasudotoxSevere
  38. 38SonrotoclaxSevere
  39. 39CarfilzomibFAERS AKISevere
  40. 40VenetoclaxFAERS AKISevere

A comparison of documented kidney-injury data within one drug class — not a substitution recommendation. Efficacy, indication, and non-renal toxicity differ between these agents and are out of scope here. Educational only, not medical advice.