New Hope For Patients With Polycystic Kidney Disease

Polycystic Kidneys

The somatostatin analogue Lanreotide has been found to decrease polycystic liver volume via the mechanism of reduction of intracellular signaling of cAMP. In the study that demonstrated this finding it was also found that patients with polycystic kidney disease showed a trend towards decreased rate of cyst growth i.e they increased their kidney volumes slower than patients who were not given the drug.

The Resolve trial was designed to to examine the effectiveness (change in total liver volume) of
lanreotide in ADPKD patients with polycystic livers. In addition, it will determine the effect
of lanreotide on change in total kidney and kidney intermediate volume. Intermediate volume
is tightly correlated with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and its long-term decline, and may
represent a marker for ADPKD progression.

lanreotide

We had previously reported on off label use of sirolimus in ADPKD. This news regarding lantreotide is therefore very welcome as sirolimus has more recently been shown to have very little effect on intermediate cyst growth and is not without significant side effects.