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Hedgehog (SMO) inhibitor

Vismodegib

Erivedge · VIS

Hedgehog (SMO) inhibitor · approved 2012 · 6 references

First-in-class Hedgehog/SMO inhibitor whose muscle spasms and reported hyponatremia are the renal-relevant signals — a SIADH-type electrolyte story, not a structural lesion.

Signature injury
SIADH / Hyponatremia
Severity
Mild
Reversibility
Reversible
Onset
Muscle spasms within the first weeks-to-months; hyponatremia is sporadic and variable in timing.

Signature kidney injury & incidence

SIADH / Hyponatremia.

Muscle spasms are near-universal (~64-71%), with dysgeusia and alopecia close behind; hyponatremia is reported but uncommon and not precisely quantified for an SIADH mechanism. Direct kidney injury is rare.

Source: Sekulic et al., J Am Acad Dermatol 2015 (ERIVANCE); Chang et al., J Am Acad Dermatol 2014

Reported injury signatures: SIADH / Hyponatremia, Electrolyte Disturbance.

Renal toxicity profile

  1. SIADH / HyponatremiaPrimary~10.3%Grade 3 hyponatremia in 10.3% (most common grade 3 AE) plus grade 4 hyponatremia, phase I, n=68
  2. Electrolyte DisturbanceSecondary

Onset timing & rechallenge

Variable / unpredictable — Muscle spasms arise within the first weeks-to-months, but the hyponatremia is sporadic and variable in timing.

Mechanism of kidney injury

The dominant toxicity is muscle spasm (myalgia) from Hedgehog inhibition in muscle, occasionally with creatine kinase elevation. The renal-relevant signal is an electrolyte one: hyponatremia, in some reports of an SIADH pattern (euvolemic, inappropriately concentrated urine, low serum osmolality), reflecting disordered free-water handling at the collecting duct rather than tubular toxicity. Volume loss from vomiting/diarrhea or poor intake can additionally contribute to hyponatremia and prerenal physiology.

Clinical presentation

Painful muscle cramps, dysgeusia/ageusia, alopecia and weight loss are the hallmark adverse events. When hyponatremia occurs it is usually mild and asymptomatic but can present with nausea, lethargy or confusion; labs show low serum sodium and osmolality with inappropriately concentrated urine when SIADH-type.

Management

Manage muscle spasms supportively (hydration, dose interruptions; some use calcium-channel blockers or L-carnitine empirically). For hyponatremia, determine volume status: fluid-restrict and treat the underlying SIADH-type physiology if euvolemic, or rehydrate if hypovolemic; correct sodium at a safe rate. Dose-interrupt for intolerable spasms. Most electrolyte effects reverse with management.

Risk factors

  • Concurrent thiazides or other hyponatremia-inducing drugs
  • Volume depletion from nausea/vomiting or poor intake
  • Older age and baseline electrolyte disturbance
  • Polypharmacy in elderly BCC patients

Prevention

  • Maintain hydration; review concomitant hyponatremia-inducing drugs
  • Counsel on muscle-cramp symptoms and supportive measures
  • Avoid pregnancy (potent teratogen) per REMS

Renal dose adjustment

No dose adjustment recommended for mild-moderate renal impairment; not formally studied in severe impairment/ESKD. Hepatic metabolism predominates and dosing is fixed (150 mg daily).

Dialyzability & ESKD dosing

Very highly protein-bound (>99%); not expected to be dialyzable and no ESKD dosing established.

Differential diagnosis

For hyponatremia, separate SIADH-type (euvolemic, concentrated urine) from hypovolemic hyponatremia (volume depletion, low urine sodium) and drug interactions (thiazides). Muscle symptoms with high CK should prompt evaluation for rhabdomyolysis (more a sonidegib concern).

Monitoring

  • Serum sodium and electrolytes at baseline and periodically
  • Creatine kinase if severe or persistent muscle symptoms
  • Volume status and weight
  • Pregnancy testing per REMS in patients of childbearing potential

Key trials & series

  • ERIVANCE BCC (Sekulic, J Am Acad Dermatol 2015) — pivotal phase 2 defining the muscle-spasm-dominant safety profile
  • Expanded-access study (Chang, J Am Acad Dermatol 2014) — large safety confirmation

Clinical pearls

  • Muscle spasms are the signature, treatment-limiting toxicity — counsel every patient.
  • Hyponatremia is the renal-relevant signal; check volume status before treating to avoid overcorrection.
  • Vismodegib is a potent teratogen — strict pregnancy prevention (REMS) is mandatory.
  • Dysgeusia and weight loss compound dehydration risk in elderly patients.

Anticancer mechanism

Oral small-molecule inhibitor of Smoothened (SMO), a transmembrane component of the Hedgehog signaling pathway. In basal cell carcinoma, constitutive Hedgehog activation (PTCH1 loss or SMO mutation) drives tumor growth; vismodegib blocks SMO to shut down the pathway.

Note

The renal link is indirect and electrolyte-based: muscle spasms dominate the safety profile, and the kidney-relevant signal is reported hyponatremia (sometimes SIADH-type), not a structural nephropathy. Precise hyponatremia/SIADH rates are not well quantified.

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.Pivotal ERIVANCE basal cell carcinoma (BCC) study: 12-month update of efficacy and safety of vismodegib in advanced BCC.Sekulic A et al. · J Am Acad Dermatol · 2015 · PMID 25981002
  2. 2.Expanded access study of patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma treated with the Hedgehog pathway inhibitor, vismodegib.Chang AL et al. · J Am Acad Dermatol · 2013 · PMID 24189279
  3. 3.Efficacy and Safety of Sonic Hedgehog Inhibitors in Basal Cell Carcinomas: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (2009-2022).Nguyen A et al. · Am J Clin Dermatol · 2023 · PMID 36795228
  4. 4.A Review of Hedgehog Inhibitors Sonidegib and Vismodegib for Treatment of Advanced Basal Cell Carcinoma.Migden M et al. · J Drugs Dermatol · 2021 · PMID 33538567
  5. 5.Efficacy and safety profile of vismodegib in a real-world setting cohort of patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma in Argentina.Cozzani R et al. · Int J Dermatol · 2020 · PMID 32034775
  6. 6.A phase Ib study to assess the efficacy and safety of vismodegib in combination with ruxolitinib in patients with intermediate- or high-risk myelofibrosis.Couban S et al. · J Hematol Oncol · 2018 · PMID 30249277
Educational monograph from NephTox (nephtox.com). Not medical advice — verify against current guidelines before any clinical decision.