Colonic Perforation Associated with Necrotizing Fasciitis in a Patient Receiving Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor (Pazopanib) for Recurrent Retroperitoneal Renal Cell Carcinoma

Pazopanib, under the trade name of votrient, is a potent tyrosine-kinase growth factor receptor inhibitor used in the treatment of late-stage kidney cancer and soft tissue sarcoma. Rarely this drug has been associated with gastrointestinal perforations; however, prior studies have not shown an association with necrotizing fasciitis. We present a case of suspected pazopanib-induced extensive colonic perforation resulting in a severe necrotizing fasciitis. As this is a potentially rare complication of this targeted therapy, our goal is to heighten the awareness of colonic perforation as it is only seen in 0.9% of patients on pazopanib. The staged operative management and multidisciplinary approach throughout this patient’s care allowed for complete recovery from a life-threatening diagnosis. J Curr Surg. 2020;10(3):54-58 doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/jcs416