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FGFR inhibitor

Pemigatinib

Pemazyre · Pemi

FGFR inhibitor · approved 2020 · 6 references

An FGFR1/2/3 inhibitor for cholangiocarcinoma — hyperphosphatemia is its near-universal class signature.

Signature injury
Electrolyte Disturbance
Severity
Moderate
Reversibility
Reversible
Onset
Early — within the first cycles.

Signature kidney injury & incidence

Electrolyte Disturbance — representative incidence ~60%.

Hyperphosphatemia is the most common adverse event in the pivotal FIGHT-202 trial, affecting roughly 60% of patients (any grade), with low rates of severe events; it is on-target and managed with monitoring, diet, and binders.

Source: Abou-Alfa et al., Lancet Oncol 2020

Reported injury signatures: Electrolyte Disturbance.

Onset timing & rechallenge

Subacute (~1–6 weeks) — Early — within the first cycles.

Mechanism of kidney injury

On-target FGFR1 inhibition disrupts FGF23-mediated suppression of proximal-tubular phosphate reabsorption (NaPi-2a/2c), increasing reabsorption and raising serum phosphate. Prolonged hyperphosphatemia with a high calcium-phosphate product risks nephrocalcinosis and ectopic/vascular calcification.

Clinical presentation

Asymptomatic hyperphosphatemia on routine monitoring; may co-occur with hypophosphatemia after dose interruption (a 'rebound') or hypocalcemia, and an elevated calcium-phosphate product. Soft-tissue mineralization risk if persistent; alopecia, dysgeusia, and nail changes are common non-renal effects.

Management

Phosphate binders (e.g. sevelamer) and dietary restriction for phosphate >5.5 mg/dL; interrupt and dose-reduce for higher/persistent levels per label, and discontinue for persistent hyperphosphatemia despite optimal therapy. Monitor for nephrocalcinosis with prolonged elevation.

Risk factors

  • Pre-existing CKD
  • High calcium-phosphate product
  • Concurrent vitamin D / phosphate intake

Prevention

  • Low-phosphate diet when phosphate rises
  • Protocol-based dose modification (14-days-on / 7-days-off schedule)

Renal dose adjustment

No starting-dose change for mild or moderate renal impairment (eGFR 30-89). Severe impairment (eGFR 15-29) carries a specific label reduction: 9 mg on whichever schedule the indication designates, down from 13.5 mg. ESRD on intermittent hemodialysis needs no adjustment per label. Beyond those bands, dosing is driven by the phosphate-guided algorithm (and the intermittent 14-days-on/7-days-off schedule) rather than a CrCl rule.

Dialyzability & ESKD dosing

Highly protein-bound oral small molecule; not expected to be appreciably dialyzed. The label carries a dedicated ESRD-on-intermittent-hemodialysis cohort and recommends no dosage adjustment there — which is also the strongest support for the non-dialyzable verdict. The phosphate biomarker, however, is confounded in ESKD.

Differential diagnosis

On-target FGFR-inhibitor hyperphosphatemia vs CKD-related hyperphosphatemia vs tumor lysis (with hyperuricemia/hyperkalemia/AKI). The early, dose-related, isolated phosphate elevation without AKI points to the drug.

Monitoring

  • Serum phosphate at baseline and periodically (more often during up-titration/early cycles)
  • Serum calcium and calcium-phosphate product
  • Ophthalmologic exams for retinal detachment/serous retinopathy; routine creatinine

Key trials & series

  • FIGHT-202 (registrational FGFR2-fusion cholangiocarcinoma)
  • FIGHT-302 (first-line cholangiocarcinoma)

Clinical pearls

  • Hyperphosphatemia is the FGFR-class signature; expect it, monitor phosphate, and treat with diet/binders before changing dose.
  • Watch for rebound hypophosphatemia during the planned 7-day drug-free interval.
  • Sustained elevation risks nephrocalcinosis — track the calcium-phosphate product, not phosphate alone.

Anticancer mechanism

Selective FGFR1/2/3 inhibitor blocking oncogenic FGFR signaling; approved for FGFR2-fusion/rearrangement-positive cholangiocarcinoma.

Note

Nephrocalcinosis is a theoretical/uncommon risk of sustained hyperphosphatemia; the dominant signal is reversible on-target hyperphosphatemia.

Guidelines & consensus

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.

  • ADQI (2026) — The nephrotoxic effects of anti-cancer therapies: consensus report of the 34th Acute Disease Quality Initiative workgroupProvides 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.Nat Rev Nephrol · PMID 41361704
  • SIRM (2022) — SIRM-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)Recommends 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.Radiol Med · PMID 35303246
  • KDIGO (2020) — KDIGO Controversies Conference on onco-nephrology: understanding kidney impairment and solid-organ malignancies, and managing kidney cancerIdentifies 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.Kidney Int · PMID 33126977
  • KDIGO (2020) — KDIGO Controversies Conference on onco-nephrology: kidney disease in hematological malignancies and the burden of cancer after kidney transplantationAddresses 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.Kidney Int · PMID 33276867
  • ADDIKD (2025) — Integrating International Consensus Guidelines for Anticancer Drug Dosing in Kidney Dysfunction (ADDIKD) into everyday practiceProvides 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.EClinicalMedicine · PMID 40290844
  • ADDIKD (2025) — Aligning kidney function assessment in patients with cancer to global practices in internal medicineThree 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.EClinicalMedicine · PMID 40290845
  • ADDIKD (2025) — A methodology for determining dosing recommendations for anticancer drugs in patients with reduced kidney functionEstablishes 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.EClinicalMedicine · PMID 40290846
  • KDIGO (2013) — Diagnosis, evaluation, and management of acute kidney injury: a KDIGO summary (Part 1)Defines/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.Crit Care · PMID 23394211
  • KDIGO (2024) — Executive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Evaluation and Management of Chronic Kidney Disease: known knowns and known unknownsEvaluate 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.Kidney Int · PMID 38519239
  • KDIGO (2021) — Executive summary of the KDIGO 2021 Guideline for the Management of Glomerular DiseasesProvides 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.Kidney Int · PMID 34556300
  • KDIGO (2024) — Executive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of ANCA-Associated VasculitisUpdates 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.Kidney Int · PMID 38388147
  • KDIGO (2024) — Executive summary of the KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Lupus NephritisUpdates 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.Kidney Int · PMID 38182299
  • KDIGO (2025) — Executive summary of the KDIGO 2025 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy (IgAN) and Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis (IgAV)Encourages 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.Kidney Int · PMID 40975525

References

6 peer-reviewed references. Citation metadata via PubMed / NLM.

  1. 1.Pemigatinib for previously treated, locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma: a multicentre, open-label, phase 2 study.Abou-Alfa GK et al. · Lancet Oncol · 2020 · PMID 32203698
  2. 2.FGFR-targeted therapeutics: clinical activity, mechanisms of resistance and new directions.Katoh M et al. · Nat Rev Clin Oncol · 2024 · PMID 38424198
  3. 3.Management of Fibroblast Growth Factor Inhibitor Treatment-emergent Adverse Events of Interest in Patients with Locally Advanced or Metastatic Urothelial Carcinoma.Siefker-Radtke AO et al. · Eur Urol Open Sci · 2023 · PMID 37101768
  4. 4.Calcinosis cutis dermatologic toxicity associated with fibroblast growth factor receptor inhibitor for the treatment of Wilms tumor.Arudra K et al. · J Cutan Pathol · 2018 · PMID 30021048
  5. 5.Safety and efficacy of the pan-FGFR inhibitor erdafitinib in advanced urothelial carcinoma and other solid tumors: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Zheng X et al. · Front Oncol · 2023 · PMID 36776367
  6. 6.Safety, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamics of erdafitinib, a pan-fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in patients with advanced or refractory solid tumors.Nishina T et al. · Invest New Drugs · 2017 · PMID 28965185

Case reports & series (3)

The weakest rung of clinical evidence — single-patient and small-series reports, strongest first. Each carries a heuristic strength grade (A Strong / B Moderate / C Limited) inferred from its abstract and journal, not a formal appraisal. Weigh well below the primary references above.

  1. C1.[C · Limited]Management and mechanism of calciphylaxis in a patient treated with the FGFR inhibitor pemigatinib-a case report.Chandana SR et al. · J Gastrointest Oncol · 2024 · PMID 38482230
  2. C2.[C · Limited]Hyperphosphatemic Tumoral Calcinosis With Pemigatinib Use.Puar A et al. · AACE Clin Case Rep · 2022 · PMID 36189136
  3. C3.[C · Limited]Calcinosis Cutis With Selective Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor Inhibitors: A Case Report and Review of Literature.Ghimire B et al. · Cureus · 2025 · PMID 40486452
Educational monograph from NephTox (nephtox.com). Not medical advice — verify against current guidelines before any clinical decision.