Almost all patients who are receiving the EGFR inhibitor cetuximab (Erbitux) will have decreasing levels of magnesium (hypomagnesemia).
To study this side effect, Belgian researchers measured magnesium levels in the urine and blood of 98 patients receiving EGFR treatments, either as a single drug or in combination with chemotherapy. 97% of them had magnesium levels decrease during treatment. Controls on only chemotherapy did not have a similar side effect.
Urine testing and a special IV magnesium load test revealed that the kidneys were not reabsorbing magnesium and returning it to the bloodstream.
Led by Prof. Sabine Tejbar, M.D., the team concluded:
EGFR-inhibiting antibodies compromised the renal magnesium retention capacity, leading to hypomagnesemia in most patients. Future studies should address the effects of exposure and target affinity. Our study suggests a pivotal role of the EGFR-signalling pathway in regulating magnesium homoeostasis.
SOURCE: Tejbar et. al. Lancet Oncology, early online publication April 17, 2007.
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