Sirolimus - an exciting alternative in transplantation

Sirolimus ['Rapamune'] has raised hopes within the transplantation community, since it has been shown to be an effective immunosuppressant without the nephrotoxicity exhibited by calcineurin inhibitors. At the 1st Joint Meeting of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons and the American Society of Transplantation [Chicago, US; May 2000] delegates were updated on the current clinical status of sirolimus. A particular highlight was a study showing that sirolimus allows early elimination of cyclosporin in kidney transplant recipients. The use of this agent as rescue therapy for nephrotoxicity as well as for refractory rejection was also under discussion at several sessions. Furthermore, the recent introduction of a tablet formulation of sirolimus has sparked a lot of interest: an efficacy comparison of oral solution and tablet formulations was presented during a poster exhibition.