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Safety of nintedanib for treatment of fibrotic lung disease after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Bone Marrow Transplantation volume 53, pages 1218–1220 (2018)Cite this article

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Graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) of the lung is most commonly manifested as bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) and may occur in up to half of patients with GHVD [1]. Typical treatments include systemic corticosteroids coupled with inhaled steroids, inhaled beta agonists, macrolides, and various other therapies [1,2,3,4,5]. Pro-fibrotic mediators, including platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), may play a role in the development of BOS [6, 7].

Nintedanib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that mediates multiple pro-fibrotic growth factors, including PDGF, VEGF, and fibroblast growth factor [8]. This drug can slow the rate of disease progression and reduce the risk of exacerbations in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) [9]. Potential side effects of nintedanib include diarrhea, nausea, increased liver enzymes, hemorrhage, and arterial thrombosis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA

    Kyle R. Brownback & Lucas R. Pitts

  2. Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapeutics, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA

    Sunil Abhyankar

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  1. Kyle R. Brownback
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  2. Lucas R. Pitts
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  3. Sunil Abhyankar
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Correspondence to Kyle R. Brownback.

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Dr. Pitts is a paid consultant and speaker for Boehringer Ingelheim. The other authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Brownback, K.R., Pitts, L.R. & Abhyankar, S. Safety of nintedanib for treatment of fibrotic lung disease after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Bone Marrow Transplant 53, 1218–1220 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41409-018-0182-9

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