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Mutant IDH1/2 inhibitor

Vorasidenib

Voranigo · IDH1/2 inhibitor

Mutant IDH1/2 inhibitor · approved 2024 · 4 references

A brain-penetrant IDH inhibitor whose kidney footprint is a benign creatinine bump, not true AKI.

Signature injury
Pseudo-AKI
Severity
Mild
Reversibility
Reversible
Onset
A transporter-mediated creatinine rise, if it occurs, appears early (within the first weeks to first cycles) and plateaus; it is dose-related and stable rather than progressive.

Signature kidney injury & incidence

Pseudo-AKI.

Direct nephrotoxicity is minimal. No vorasidenib-specific AKI signal has been reported; in the registrational INDIGO phase 3 trial the predominant grade >=3 toxicity was hepatic (ALT elevation in ~9.6%), not renal. A mild, reversible serum-creatinine increase — a transporter-mediated pseudo-AKI — is the expected renal finding. A precise renal-event incidence is not quantified.

Source: 37272516

Reported injury signatures: Pseudo-AKI, Prerenal / Hemodynamic AKI.

Renal toxicity profile

  1. Pseudo-AKIPrimary
  2. Prerenal / Hemodynamic AKISecondary

Onset timing & rechallenge

Subacute (~1–6 weeks) — Any transporter-mediated creatinine rise appears early, within the first weeks to first cycles, then plateaus in a dose-related, stable fashion.

Mechanism of kidney injury

Vorasidenib has no established intrinsic tubular, glomerular, or vascular nephrotoxic mechanism. Any rise in serum creatinine is best understood as a pseudo-AKI: IDH inhibitors of this class (e.g., ivosidenib) inhibit organic cation transporter 2 (OCT2) and multidrug and toxin extrusion (MATE) proteins on the proximal tubule, blocking tubular secretion of creatinine. This elevates measured serum creatinine and lowers the creatinine-based estimated GFR without a true decline in glomerular filtration. Beyond this, kidney involvement is largely prerenal/hemodynamic and uncommon.

Clinical presentation

Typically asymptomatic. The most likely renal-laboratory finding is a modest, stable rise in serum creatinine without oliguria, electrolyte derangement, proteinuria, hematuria, or active urinary sediment. True AKI, interstitial nephritis, or electrolyte wasting are not characteristic. The dominant on-treatment toxicities are hepatic (transaminase elevation) and neurologic, not renal.

Management

For an isolated creatinine rise without other signs of kidney injury, recognize pseudo-AKI: confirm with a cystatin C-based eGFR or by checking that urinalysis and electrolytes are bland, and avoid unnecessary drug interruption. Manage true AKI, if it arises, by the usual approach — assess volume status, review the medication list, and exclude obstruction and other causes.

Risk factors

  • Concurrent nephrotoxins or other OCT2/MATE-inhibiting drugs
  • Baseline CKD where small creatinine shifts cross dosing thresholds
  • Volume depletion (prerenal physiology)
  • Reliance on creatinine-based eGFR rather than cystatin C for monitoring

Prevention

  • Avoid co-administering other OCT2/MATE-inhibiting drugs or nephrotoxins where possible, and correct volume depletion

Renal dose adjustment

No dedicated renal-impairment dose adjustment is established for mild-to-moderate impairment; vorasidenib is hepatically metabolized (CYP1A2/CYP3A) and dose modifications in the label are driven by hepatotoxicity, not renal function. Data at CrCl ≤40 mL/min and on dialysis are lacking; there the label directs monitoring for increased adverse reactions and modifying the dose accordingly. A creatinine-based eGFR fall from blocked tubular secretion should not by itself trigger renal dose reduction.

Dialyzability & ESKD dosing

Not characterized. Vorasidenib is a small molecule but is highly protein-bound and extensively hepatically cleared, so it is unlikely to be meaningfully removed by hemodialysis; no formal dialysis data exist.

Differential diagnosis

Distinguish a benign transporter-mediated creatinine rise (pseudo-AKI: stable creatinine, normal cystatin C-based GFR, bland sediment, no electrolyte wasting) from true intrinsic AKI. Consider prerenal azotemia from volume depletion, concomitant nephrotoxins, contrast or other glioma-directed therapies, and — given frequent corticosteroid and anticonvulsant co-medication in glioma patients — drug-related interstitial nephritis from those agents rather than from vorasidenib itself.

Monitoring

  • Serum creatinine / eGFR at baseline and periodically, interpreted with awareness of possible transporter-mediated elevation
  • Hepatic panel (ALT/AST/bilirubin) per label — the principal toxicity to monitor
  • Cystatin C-based GFR when a creatinine rise needs clarification

Key trials & series

  • INDIGO (NCT04164901): phase 3 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of vorasidenib 40 mg once daily in residual/recurrent grade 2 IDH-mutant glioma; improved imaging-based PFS and time to next intervention; predominant grade >=3 toxicity was ALT elevation, with no notable renal safety signal

Clinical pearls

  • An isolated creatinine bump on an IDH inhibitor is most likely pseudo-AKI from blocked OCT2/MATE tubular secretion, mirroring ivosidenib; confirm with cystatin C before acting.
  • No vorasidenib-specific AKI, interstitial nephritis, or electrolyte-wasting reports exist; renal claims here are reasoned from class behavior and registrational safety data.
  • In glioma patients, concurrent corticosteroids and antiepileptics are more probable culprits for renal lab changes than vorasidenib itself.

Anticancer mechanism

Vorasidenib is an oral, blood-brain-barrier-penetrant inhibitor of the neomorphic mutant IDH1 (R132) and IDH2 (R172) enzymes. Mutant IDH converts alpha-ketoglutarate to the oncometabolite D-2-hydroxyglutarate (D-2-HG), which dysregulates DNA and histone demethylation and blocks cellular differentiation. By suppressing D-2-HG production, vorasidenib restores epigenetic regulation and slows growth of IDH-mutant grade 2 gliomas, delaying progression and time to next intervention.

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

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

  1. 1.Vorasidenib in IDH1- or IDH2-Mutant Low-Grade Glioma.Mellinghoff IK, van den Bent MJ, Blumenthal DT, et al. · N Engl J Med · 2023 · PMID 37272516
  2. 2.Vorasidenib in IDH1-mutant or IDH2-mutant low-grade glioma (INDIGO): secondary and exploratory endpoints from a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial.Cloughesy TF, van den Bent MJ, Touat M, et al. · Lancet Oncol · 2025 · PMID 41175888
  3. 3.The Role of Mutant IDH Inhibitors in the Treatment of Glioma.Nakhate V, Lasica AB, Wen PY. · Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep · 2024 · PMID 39302605
  4. 4.Current and emerging therapies in IDH-mutant glioma.Nakhate V, Youssef G, Wen PY. · Neurotherapeutics · 2026 · PMID 42085879
Educational monograph from NephTox (nephtox.com). Not medical advice — verify against current guidelines before any clinical decision.