Profile of vismodegib and its potential in the treatment of advanced basal cell carcinoma

Abstract

Muzafar A Macha,1 Surinder K Batra,1,2 Apar Kishor Ganti3,41Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, 2Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, 3Department of Internal Medicine, VA Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System, Omaha, 4Division of Oncology-Hematology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USAAbstract: Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common human malignancy. Recent advances in our understanding of the critical biologic pathways implicated in the development and progression of BCC have led to the development of the first molecular targeted therapy for this disease. The hedgehog pathway is mutated in virtually all patients with BCC and recent trials with vismodegib, an inhibitor of this pathway, have shown significant responses. This review will discuss the importance of the hedgehog pathway in the pathogenesis of BCC and describe in detail the pharmacology of vismodegib in relation to its activity in advanced BCC.Keywords: basal cell carcinoma, vismodegib, hedgehog pathway